Tempest Keep
by Lady Kaliska
Summary: What should have been a simple C-rank mission to deliver a scroll to Tea Country so a certain pink haired medic could take a break from a tedious hospital schedule became anything but. All within the breath of a moment everything changed.
1. Chapter 1

**Story Title: Tempest Keep**

**This story is on official hiatus until further notice.**

**A/N: **This story has been rolling around in my head for some time. So one night, unable to sleep. I decided to go ahead and write it. For this plot, I was inspired by Xenogears. Despite this, it's not a true AU as it will take place in the Narutoverse. At least, not the extreme AU's you all know me for. For those of you who have played Xenogears, you'll notice my inspiration most likely, and quotes that I will credit at the end of the chapter. For those of you who have not, do not worry, there will be nothing confusing. It's not a crossover. Just a plot idea. I just want to be completely honest and I don't want to take complete credit saying that the idea was all original.

**"Itachi" **can be translated as "weasel". To some degree of Japanese belief, weasels are considered a harbinger, often signifying ill fortune. **-From Wiki**

**Summary: **What should have been a simple C-rank mission to deliver a scroll to Tea Country so a certain pink haired medic could take a break from a tedious hospital schedule became anything but. All within the breath of a moment.

**Disclaimer: **Naruto does not belong to me. Neither does Xenogears which inspired this plot.

**Chapter 1:**

Sakura truly believed that she was a capable, strong, and reasonably intelligent kunoichi. Her medic skill were second to none and her chakra control was close to perfection. There wasn't any nin with a bloodline trait that she knew that could match her skill when it came to chakra control. However at this very moment in time, none of these things mattered in the grand scheme of things.

Despite all her skills as a competent kunoichi, she had very quickly found herself playing the role of prey. The one who chased her was known to be merciless and his bloodline trait was certainly not one she wanted to tackle this gray and cold morning. She didn't think she'd be prepared to face it at any moment of the day, to be frankly honest. She wasn't a coward by any means of the word, but she was smart. And smart people knew that misplaced pride didn't save a person's life when death was hot on their heels.

The pink haired medic nin could sense by the nearly stifling chakra signature that pursued her that she was outclassed. Sakura got the feeling that he was allowing her to sense the signature, and honestly it was subtle, but the deadly edge to it caused shivers to run down the length of her spine. She knew exactly whose it was. Sakura had sensed it once before. It was during the time team seven and team Gai had went to retrieve the Kazekage from Akatsuki's clutches. At that time, what they had fought, hadn't even really been the true man himself at full power. It had taken both the full combined efforts of Naruto and Kakashi-sensei to take the clone down. Her breath came out in near gasps from fatigue at the forced quick pace. She moved from tree branch to tree branch, her brain trying to assimilate a plan of escape. Instead she found herself being driven forward by him. The instinct to remove herself from the threat was too strong to ignore. It overrode her need to rest.

Pulling the scroll, the object she was sure he more than likely after out of her jounin issued vest pocket. She placed a quick concealing seal over it, and stuffed it into knothole of a tree as she jumped past. He wasn't close enough to get a visual on her, so it should remain safe for the moment at least. She'd come back for it later if she was able to. If for some reason he caught up to her, she didn't want the information to fall into enemy hands. The medic nin lifted her face slightly when she felt a droplet hit her forehead. The moisture dribbled down the side of her cheek and by the time it got to her chin, she found herself caught in a hard downpour. The water pelting her pasted her clothing and hair to her now slick skin.

The young woman hopped down from an old oak branch and into an open field. Her heart caught in her throat when she realized she had ran herself into a cliff. Or maybe, she concluded, he had pushed her this way purposely to effectively trap her. It would explain the show of the ominous chakra signature. Peering down the sheer rocky face, she knew that there was no way she could safely climb down the now wet slicked stone without taking a major chance. She definitely felt like she was playing a game of cat and mouse. The disgruntled kunoichi was not enjoying playing the role of the cornered rodent.

Lifting her chin bravely, she decided she'd at least face her pursuer. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of coming upon her cornered and quivering scared and helpless. Fear was replaced by a sudden spurt of calm serenity. An emotion completely out of place with the situation she found herself in. Slowly she turned to face none other than Itachi Uchiha.

When he landed in the opening at the opposite end from where she stood, her slender frame straightened her spine uncurving until it was ramrod straight. Despite the knowledge she had of the sharingan, the compulsion to look into those red eyes that could very well mean her death was too strong to ignore. Her eyes lifted almost against her will. For several long moments silence reigned between the two of them. The sound of rain splattering against the ground pounded in her ears along with hard beat of her heart. Sakura could hear somewhere within her mind Chiyo's voice lecturing her, even after the years had gone by since the old woman's death. _To take on a sharingan wielder alone was suicide. _Her face rose and she gazed brazenly into his eyes because oddly enough, she wanted to. The sudden sensation was compulsory, unexplainable, and even though common sense denoted that she should be afraid for her life in this situation, especially since she recalled vividly what the Tsukuyomi had done to Kakashi-sensei, the fear that been in her heart before had left her. Though she was looking at the elder Uchiha brother, Sasuke's name didn't even register in existence in her befuddled state of mind.

The ire she should feel for this man, the hatred that she'd once proclaimed out loud because this person had threatened the very existence of her precious people, had melted away like a sandcastle against the strength of the tide into the realm of the forgotten. It was such a strange sensation that she was confused by the sudden dulling of her emotions. She fought against the bizzare emotions churning within her. She was a creature who believed in common sense. This strange sense of self was very unlike her, and it didn't fit in the scheme of survival. However, she lost the battle, and couldn't wrench her eyes away.

Pupils in almost too large green eyes dilated and her breath caught in her throat as she was pulled into the limbo of Tsukuyomi beneath the drugging pull of deadly crimson. Her head fell back and her mouth opened slightly when she found herself staring up into a sanguine moon. Trying to pull her equilibrium together the best she could in such a place. An existence that was, and wasn't. She found herself failing miserably.

In this world created by him, as silly as the thought was, she found it eerily beautiful in a bizarre sort of way. A breeze whistled past her and the shallow water she stood in rippled against her sandal clad feet. Dark red clouds floated past lazily across the ebony shaded sky almost making her forget that it was actually raining where reality remained. It was a strange feeling, she thought somewhat absently, that she wasn't afraid even as she continued to hold those cold eyes of his with her own.

Tilting her chin at an angle to get a better look at his face, as she gazed quietly into his stoic visage, an inexplicable warmth stole through her, curling through her insides. Unexplainable and completely bizarre. Her voice came out strangled, the words spilling from her lips were words neither of them expected, "I should hate you. I should be afraid."

"Hn," was the only sound that came from the impassive male.

Though his face was blank and his eyes were as emotionless as a stagnant puddle, Sakura sensed he was just as confused as she was. Her body seemed to have a mind of its own, because though it was an utterly stupid thing to do her logical sense of self berated her, her hand raised moving past the high collar of his cloak and her fingers brushed the skin of his cheek.

Immediately he stiffened when the callused fingertips traced his jawline, the touch as intimate as a lover's. Graceful and gentle. He grabbed her seemingly delicate wrist in his hand and pulled it away from him eyeing the young woman, her odd actions and words unnerving him. It had been years since another person had touched him without malice. Itachi Uchiha, had long killed off his emotions. A still, gray pool, placid and untouched in his soul. The life he had chosen, the path he had determined to walk unwavering had required that he'd done so. If he had not, then, he would have fallen into madness. The blood of many soaked his hands, some innocent and others intent on power and war. His love for his brother was the only part of him that he hadn't allowed to die away. It was he who held his redemption.

He had trailed after this Konoha kunoichi after separating from Kisame, in search of a scroll that Pein wanted. Information pertaining to Tea Country. It was a simple matter, or so he had thought. Somehow before he could sweep in and take her completely by surprise, she had sensed his presence. She shouldn't have for his skill by far out-classed hers. Itachi couldn't even say that he'd truly caught her. He'd been close to it, but she had jumped down into an open field and had turned to face him. The woman even had the audacity to look him in the eye without a trace of fear in her slender body. Usually he had to subtly coerce an opponent, shinobi far more seasoned than her, into looking into his eyes.

A ripple, in the surface of the gray pool. Something about her green eyes, pierced something in him he couldn't explain. Her presence was making him distinctly uncomfortable. Which should have not been possible, because his emotions should be long dead. Reflexively, and unaware, his thumb began to trace small circles on her thin wrist. In this place, where only the mind existed, the two faced one another uncertainly.

When Itachi realized what he was doing he released his hold on her and asked without inflection, "Where is it?"

"Gone," was the reply.

Sakura watched as he arched an eyebrow, the first true expression of emotion she'd seen from him, as slight as it was. He was irritated she surmised, her expression serene. It was strange, this perplexing sense of calm that had over taken her. Even when his hand shot out and wrapped around her neck, there was no fear, after all this place was only an illusion he created. It felt real however when the tapered fingers squeezed her windpipe and lifted her bodily off of the ground.

Suddenly she felt something hard against her back, and she realized as he stepped back to look at her, she was hung on a crucifix. In his hand a wakizashi blade appeared in his grasp, and he held the pointed end out at her, the point only inches away from her midriff. Her eyes never left his as he repeated, his eyes if possible had gone even colder, "Where is it?"

A smile curved her lower lip, "Gone." She replied again. Sakura had no idea where her self preservation had gone. She curiously watched the way the left corner of his mandible tightened slightly. It was obvious he found her answer less than pleasing.

"Is a scroll worth dying over?" he asked softly, twin crimson piercing. His patience was beginning to wear thin with the strange young woman. Her behavior was not of a kunoichi, it was not typical either.

In that moment Sakura came to realize something. He hadn't killed her for her impudence. Hesitance was not something she'd expect from this man. Actually shouldn't he be the type to kill first and ask questions later. A murderer without a soul? The fact that he hadn't truly hurt her was perplexing to say the least.

Sakura replied, though she didn't know what possessed her to speak the words that came from her lips. It was a calm statement, and one that would have led him to believe she was mocking him, but the composed expression on her face belied the fact, "No a scroll is not worth dying for," a pause and a breath, "but - you will not," her eyes met his and Sakura strangely knew this to be the truth as it tumbled from her lips, "kill - me..." The realistic side of Sakura, the part that was being pushed back and quieted protested against the sheer madness of the words. It wasn't like her to taunt enemies. It was unrealistic. Insane.

Itachi's hand gripped the hilt of the sword so tightly his knuckles went white. This woman. Wasn't she supposed to be the disciple of the Godaime? A woman of formidable strength and medical skills. The girl who was a friend of the Jinchuriki, and the once teammate of his sibling. Malachite eyes, piercing in their intensity gazed into his with an emotion he couldn't quite read. The words she'd spoken were not a verbal challenge. She had spoken them as a truth. It was a simple statement. Rippling gray in the black crevice of his soul for every moment she held his eyes. His hand tightened and his jaw clenched. Where was her sense? Her eyes, her body language, her relaxed posture. The woman, held absolutely no fear of him. It was puzzling to say the least.

Sakura watched as he cocked his elbow back. Even still, she couldn't summon up the fear that she knew she should be feeling. Then just as the tip of the sword was about to pierce her flesh, the sanguine moon above them both plummeted, and the existence that was and wasn't swirled, the nebulous shifting. Sakura blinked, and when she felt the blades of grass brushing across her ankles, she realized that she was again aware. The young woman lifted her chin, and now that she was free of the Uchiha's hold, she immediately lined her limbs with chakra and swiftly moved into a crouching stance.

He stood, not but fifteen feet away from her, his entire body tense as he watched her with trepidation in the lines of his body. Even though his face was completely blank, she could tell that he wasn't quite sure what to expect from her. Sakura lifted her face, the breeze tickling her bangs against the skin of her forehead. Green eyes darkened to viridian when she sensed the chakra signature of none other than Sasuke. Understanding dawned on her, Itachi had probably released her from Tsukuyomi because of his brother's approach. Her lips moved into a frown when her heart did not leap in her chest as it normally would have. The lack of reaction alarmed her but even then the emotion was minimal. Maybe the Tsukuyomi had affected her mental facilities more than she first thought. Her reaction to everything was not like her. She should be spitting obscenities and hateful comments at the Uchiha who had one eye on her and one in the direction of the forest canopy.

She pointed a finger at Itachi, "What in the hell did you do to me bastard?" Sakura felt a little better after getting that out, although it was a little on the late side. It made her feel somewhat better to behave more like her usual self.

He didn't deign to reply, and Sakura's attention was averted as the younger sibling appeared along with the ones who followed him. When he eyed the two of them, there was confusion there, but Sakura realized something within the clarity of that moment that she would never have noticed if it wasn't for the strange state of mind she was in. The hate, the loathing, and the darkness in Sasuke's eyes, was completely absent in the elder sibling's. By which all accounts, shouldn't it be mutual? Sakura tensed, waiting, believing that Sasuke would charge his eldest brother with hateful insults and pledges of ending his life. It would give her a chance to escape.

But, it was not to be. Sasuke turned his chin, his eyes obsidian for the moment, "So you got to her first eh?"

Sakura suddenly found herself under four sets of eyes with varying expressions in them, none of them good. What had just tumbled from Sasuke's mouth was definitely unexpected. The fear that had been absent, was now finding it's way back and she felt it squeeze her heart. After all these years of avoidance, what could he possibly want from her? She couldn't help the confusion that bloomed on her face.

Sasuke eyed his brother, "I trust you'll stay out of this? I will settle matters with you at a later time," When his brother didn't react either way, he turned his gaze back to Sakura. It didn't matter, Itachi wouldn't be able to interfere, because his brother was alone, just as Sakura was, while he had three powerful shinobi behind him. To all their relief the rain stopped, leaving them standing there in the mud, the puddles rippling from the cold breeze. Sakura shivered for more reasons that just the icy chill. She felt a small spark of anger ignite in her at Sasuke's lofty behavior. She grabbed ahold of the familiar emotion, and held onto it like a vice.

"Don't talk about me as if I'm not here," Sakura placed her hands on her hips, a gesture of bravado she didn't quite feel. However it leaned a bit more towards normalcy, and so she grasped at it in hopes of grounding herself.

A smirk she knew all too well adorned his features, "Isn't that greeting a little bit cold Sakura-_chan."_ The way he said the endearment was enough to make her stomach twist into sickened, painful knots.

Itachi watched the young woman out of the corner of his vision. Even with his eyesight going bad, he could tell by her body posture that the confidence she had before was completely gone. She was a blur of pastel pink and raspberry clothing. Even the girl's physical attributes seemed out of place for a kunoichi. He was curious however about his brother. It wasn't like Sasuke to ignore him, and focus on someone else. Today was making less and less sense as it wore on. He frowned, in fact it made him all the more inquisitive about what his sibling wanted with the rather useless girl.

"Forgive me if I don't feel the need to be polite to traitors," Sakura snapped back angrily. It'd been eight years since he'd left the village, and she had long ago realized that he was never coming back. Even Naruto had come to terms with the loss of his comrade and the two of them had moved on. Sasuke had become someone they no longer knew. He had, in their last meeting tried to kill both her and Naruto, and that had been more than enough closure for Sakura.

"You wound me, however," he stepped forward his arms crossing over the front of his bare chest, "Niceties aside..." his lips furled into a parody of a smile, "I've been waiting for you to leave the confines of the village. Apparently you're quite the dedicated little doctor. I was about ready to go in there and retrieve you personally. There is something I need of you - of course it seems my brother realizes your usefulness as well and has found you first, but that's of no matter."

Itachi only raised a brow at this comment. So they were not after the scroll which would make things difficult. He couldn't let them kill her until he found out what she'd done with it. He was beginning to regret the fact that he'd sent Kisame on ahead.

"Whatever it is you want! I won't do it," Sakura sorely out numbered, responded through clenched teeth her hands fisting at her sides.

The younger Uchiha slowly unsheathed the kusanagi sword and his lips furled into a snarl, "Oh you will Sakura-_chan, _of that I have no doubt"

The mockery in his tone set her teeth on edge. Today should have came with a warning label she thought to herself wryly. The moment of humor, just like everything else today was out of place. It seemed her only way out was to fight. But with Sasuke's trio behind him smirking at her, and Itachi watching, biding his time. It was a lose lose situation for her at best. She could try to bargain her way out, to ally temporarily with Itachi, but that was like making a deal with the devil - not to mention that she'd be willfully handing information over to the Akatsuki. And who was to say that Itachi would allow her to leave alive after he was done with her. Despite her words of before, her sensible side didn't believe them. She still couldn't understand what had possessed her to say such a stupid thing to him.

He took three steps in her direction and when she tensed he said, "Don't worry Sakura-_chan._ I will be the only one you fight. I highly doubt you'll be much of a challenge. After all, you were always the weakest member of team seven."

Her lips firmed into a thin line, but his words did not strike the chord within her that it normally would have. Sakura met the onyx eyes that melted into deadly sharingan. Again that feeling of calm over took her and she felt herself drowning in the displaced emotion. Her enemies watched the uncertain girl straighten her small body. The hesitance in the lines of her slender frame completely disappeared and the lines around her face softened, her visage regal, oddly kind and wise. Her words were so softly spoken, those around her had to strain to hear them, "Some things only the weak can feel but weakness does not make them secure. It's because they are weak, that they can develop _kindness _and _never_ look down on people."

As the words came from the young woman, those that surrounded her felt the emotional weight placed behind them. Itachi Uchiha frowned, there it was again. That gentle demeanor, the calm young girl that had faced him in Tsukuyomi. Even the expression on her face was different. Her eyes struck him oddly enough as old. Very, very old. It belied her obvious youth. Her statement was as completely unshinobi like as it could get. It was almost like he was watching two different people in one body. Yet, it wasn't anything like Zetsu's split personality, but it still reminded him strongly of it. Very puzzling indeed.

Karin found herself eyeing the strange kunoichi and she quickly stepped forward and grabbed Sasuke's sleeve, "Be cautious of her Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke scoffed at the redhead, "You cannot be serious."

"I sensed a strange fluctuation in her chakra signature," she bit her lip, something about the young woman made her nervous. When the other woman turned her head to address Sasuke, those green eyes were suddenly so piercing. She almost felt like the girl could see through her. Which was ridiculous, but it made her leery of the other kunoichi all the same. She added softly, "It was like I was looking at two completely different people all at once."

Sasuke eyed Sakura, the girl he remembered as a clingy know-it-all who had always been completely useless in battle. Even though it'd been years since he'd last seen her, his taunt should have shaken her. From what he recalled, Sakura had always been a little on the emotional side for a kunoichi. He wouldn't allow Sakura the chance to play mind games on him, he thought. His visage darkened visibly and his temper rose in his impatience to get this over with. It had unnerved him to see his eldest brother cornering Sakura. Itachi, a person he loathed above all people, and it had worried him at first. Sasuke's sight was beginning to dull, and Sakura was the only medic he knew of that could help him. The last thing he needed was for Itachi to figure out how useful she could actually be. He'd make her heal his eyes one way or the other and then he would kill his brother. Fortunately for him, Itachi was not with his partner, and with team Hebi behind him - his brother could do nothing to stop him from taking the lone, unprotected kunoichi for his gain.

When Sakura didn't move to attack, Sasuke gripped the hilt of his blade, and in a blur of white and purple he rushed her.

Sakura was still cloaked in the ebb of peaceful calm and watched him as he charged. She could tell by the dark look on his face, that he meant to force her to his will. Deep within, she felt anger stir at his attempt to bend her to his whims. Lifting a fist, she cocked her elbow and she was about to aim for his face, when suddenly she was blocked by Itachi. Her eyes widened and her arm faltered as her eyes focused on one of the clouds emblazoned on his cloak. She blinked thrice. Why would he bother? It didn't make any sense.

She heard Sasuke curse when Itachi stopped his attack in a seemingly effortless maneuver, "Out of my way bastard!" and then, "If you're so eager to die today, why didn't you just say so?"

Sakura took a step back, shock etched deeply in her features. Sakura stammered at Itachi who still held his position in front of her, "No matter what you do, I won't give you the scroll!"

"Stupid woman. Are you not a kunoichi?" His tenor reached her. "If you had any sense you would have taken advantage of my distraction and escaped."

Her lower lip worked at the words thrown at her. He was right. _Where_ in the hell was her sense today? Even still, she stood rooted to the spot, unable to make herself move. Her brain was yelling at her to run, to do as he said. But that small voice inside of her, that strange sense of calm, of self, held her still. Before her eyes, the brothers fought, blurs of black and white, flashes of sharingan, blood and everything else Uchiha. Team Hebi only watched, waiting to be given the okay to join in just in case. They knew that this was Sasuke's fight, and his fight alone. Sakura could see the thirst for blood in their eyes, and was sickened by it.

Sakura's green orbs widened when Itachi moved forward, an onyx blur against the grass, forming a jutsu that Sakura didn't recognize. Whatever it was missed Sasuke only by a slight margin, but it was enough for Sasuke to knock the elder sibling back. Sakura frowned, how did he miss something like that? Sasuke's grin was completely malicious and bitter as he gazed down at his brother. He smirked at Itachi who leaned against a trunk of the tree, holding his side and eyeing Sasuke with a fathomless expression on his stoic face.

"I would thank you for the opportunity brother, but-" the malice in Sasuke's voice was so ugly and twisted it made something churn painfully in Sakura's gut. Fear begin to blossom, and the whisper that seemed to spill up from her soul became more insistant, until it was buzzing wildly in her ears.

She contemplated the scene unfolding in front of her. In the end, isn't it what Itachi deserved in the first place? The man had murdered the entire Uchiha clan and from all accounts had taunted Sasuke as a child fostering a hatred that had twisted the child into what he was now. When Sasuke's hand sparked with chidori, Sakura's heart clenched painfully in her chest. Something foreign and wild welled up within her an emotion so strong it nearly bent her over in half by it. The voice in her head was no longer a soft whisper, but a stark command. The urge to protect the eldest brother went against all reason. Against all sanity. It made no sense to her, to her distraught emotions. For a moment, when she glanced at the stoic Akatsuki, she thought she saw another man's face blurring into view. It looked like Itachi, but yet it wasn't. She blinked and the illusion was gone. The clinical side of Sakura, made a mental note to check into the mental ward of Konoha should she make it back alive.

When Sasuke's sandal clad foot lifted, Sakura's did as well. Her body moved without her permission. Automatically the chakra needed lined the soles of her feet, ankles and leg muscles and before she knew what she was doing, the kunoichi to the surprise of all present herself included, planted herself in the oncoming path of the chidori. When she met Sasuke's startled gaze, she knew hers mirrored the shock in his eyes. He swerved instinctively, and instead of the chidori hitting her straight on, it grazed her right side searing through skin and sinew. White, hot light danced before her eyes as pain raced through her body. It was sharp and jagged, lancing through her senses like a hot poker. She could hear her own scream spilling from her throat, and echoing out in the space around her.

Sakura could feel the warmth of her own blood trailing down her side. Despite the pain, she met Sasuke's angry eyes and he couldn't help but gaze back. Tranquility and peace filling the depths of the deepest, soulful green eyes he'd ever looked into. Was this the Sakura Haruno he'd known? It was almost like looking into a complete stranger's eyes and yet the warmth, and familiar feeling was all there. He could see she was just as confused by her actions, and he wondered if his brother had somehow used the sharingan to move her there, to protect himself from the oncoming chidori. That idea was quickly set aside when he could see that his brother was taken aback by Sakura's actions as well. Anger blazed inside of him. She had stopped him from killing his brother. The startling knowledge made him hate her.

Her hand went to her side to stem the flow of blood, she knew somewhere in the back of her mind she should be healing herself. However her thoughts were too focused on the boy turned man in front of her. She watched as his eyes narrowed into hatred so intense and dark it turned his once handsome face, twisting it into an ugly caricature of loathing, "You bitch! You..." he stuttered at her, stunned by what he perceived as a betrayal. This was the very woman who had said she'd loved him, never mind they were only twelve at the time, "How dare you? Once I'm done with you! I will kill you!"

Sakura sighed against the pain. All too wise green met sharingan, her lips firming beneath the onslaught of his hatred. She found that all she could feel for the boy was pity. A sad smile touched her lips and words not her own spilled from her lips, "Sasuke, you think that you're looking forward to the future driven by hate on a fruitless quest for power. But in the end you're only looking at yourself, and like that - in the end, you will find nothing."

At the soft spoken statement, Sasuke's glare intensified. Her demeanor was nothing like the Sakura he had known. She was supposed to be temperamental, rash, emotional. Instead she had spoken to him, pity and melancholy for him prevalent in her pained visage. Her words pricked at him, mocked him. His anger turned into cold rage. Later, he would make her pay for her idiotic and pathetic interference.

Itachi's lower lip worked as he watched the young woman stagger in front of him, bleeding from her side. Why had she done something so idiotic? She had move to protect him, although he had needed none. Itachi could handle his brother, of that he was certain. His brain just couldn't wrap around the woman's actions. It was too selfless for any shinobi, Konoha nin or not. Just minutes prior before his brother had come upon them, he'd threatened her life in Tsukuyomi. She should by all rights consider him an enemy. She would be stupid not to. This would be considered betrayal in the eyes of Konoha. She should be trying to help his brother kill him. His train of thought halted when the girl turned her head, her short jagged pink hair sliding over her shoulders, her viridian darkened eyes were warm and thoughtful. Another ripple. The piercing quality of her gaze, far too gentle twin emeralds tugged at apart of him that he hadn't even known existed. Who was this woman? He knew who she was, by the run of the mill information that was well-known. Yet, he was beginning to wonder about the validity of that information.

Her next words stunned all into silence, including his brother. The affection in them, the depth of emotion behind her tone would have made Itachi believe that she was completely delusional, but there was far too much clarity in her eyes for him to come to that conclusion. Simple words, a strong womanly voice lacing over the girl's more dulcet tones, "Itachi _live,_" blood trailed from the corner of her lip and then her knees collapsed and the girl fell to the ground unconscious. The sight disturbed him far deeper than it should have. For someone who'd seen so much death, the stupid female's pathetic behavior shouldn't have effected him in the least. He wrenched his gaze away, and focused on his brother. He noticed the look of shock had not yet worn off of his sibling's face. His brother was staring befuddled at the woman like he'd never seen her before.

Two simple words from a stranger. They should have not had any effect on him whatsoever, but for some reason that he couldn't explain. They did. Immediately afterwards however, his face was wiped clean of all emotion. The gray waters of his soul settled.

Sasuke bit out, "What in the hell did you do to her?"

"Concerned little brother," he mocked Sasuke, yet his words held no inflection, no feeling, "You weren't acting like it just moments ago."

Confusion, stark and naked, was visible before it was wiped away by angry loathing, "That wasn't the Sakura I knew. She..." He shook his head. It didn't matter. He would figure it all out later when he had her where he wanted her. For now he would focus on his enemy. His brother.

Two sets of crimson orbs met and bodies tensed as they fell into a fighting position once more.

-o-

_Sakura could hear voice leave her lips, "Itachi live." It bounced around in her head, along with the echoes of Sasuke cursing her to the depths of hell. Her eyes shut and as she plunged into the darkness awaiting her. She allowed it to enfold her. She welcomed the comfort it brought. It was like sinking in the depths of water. Her mind was plagued with feelings - emotions and memories that were not her own, and yet they were. A myriad of blurs, tangible and yet she couldn't grasp them. Awake she hadn't understood anything, but in this place within, she understood._

_Words she was unable to convey. Emotions she wasn't able to voice. The man who would change her, and watching herself change. Such a long, never ending, heart-rending dream. In this dream, she was Mother Hoshi, a name that had been adorned upon her by the hope of the masses. The star that would shine amongst them against the war that threatened to sunder the nation from its very foundations. It was a title that had been given to her, whether she had wanted it or not._

Smiling, her hands folded on her lap, dressed in robes of the clergy she represented. She held the position, her eyes focused on Kioshi. Her limbs were stiff from sitting for hours, but she endured it. If only to spend time with him. She could see the lines of tension at the corner of his lips. His stoic visage intent on the canvas in front of him.

Her voice was gentle, "You look tired. Maybe we should stop for today."

Kioshi's obsidian eyes lifted, meeting concerned green, "I'm fine, but perhaps it would be best if we finish up for the day. You look tired Mother Hoshi..."

"Stop it," she grimaced at the male, "When it's just the two of us, call me Sakura. Like you used to. It isn't like you to be so stiff and formal."

Mother Hoshi watched when his lips pursed but then he nodded, his voice terse, "If that's what you want Sakura."

_Sakura. She had always liked that name. When she had first met him, that was what he called her. It was her true name._

Relaxing her pose but not moving from her seat, she watched as he packed up his oils into his battered carrying case. He lifted his head, his low riding ponytail sliding over a muscular shoulder, "I need to go back home. I should be back within a few days."

"Oh," concern filtered into her gaze, her fingers smoothing out the cream hued material of her dress, "Is there something wrong?"

"I need to gather more pigments," he said, but he didn't meet her eyes this time.

"You're going to go so far just for that?" She asked startled by the unexpected announcement.

He turned his face completely away, the shadows covering his expression. "If I don't, I won't have the right pigments."

"I see," She replied, forcing cheerfulness into her voice. She smiled brightly, "Why don't you take one of my followers with you? You'll be safer - it's too dangerous to travel alone."

Kioshi stiffened, then nodded, his lips drawn into a grim line. Taking up his case, he turned on his heel and before he left he replied, his voice curt and clipped, "I'll do that thank you Mother Hoshi."

_She wondered when it was he started to refuse her. Their positions, their circumstances, he refused to look past them. To see the woman beneath the suffocating title. Or perhaps, it was her. If that was the case, she didn't want them. She only wanted them to be themselves. So she asked him, to paint her. The way she really was._

_Dreams. A life of Mother Hoshi, and countless many other women. Long, heart rending dreams, where one ended another began. Now that she was awake, those endless dreams are nearly impossible to remember at all. In those dreams, she loved only one man, no matter the day, no matter the era, that did not change, only his name._

_That dream changed her, it served the catalyst for her to resolve what her purpose was. That long, long memory of a dream, perhaps it was the memory of her soul._

-o-

The two brothers faced each other, the harsh lines of their faces deepening as they contemplated their next attack. Team Hebi watched patiently, pleased that most of the drama was over with or so they thought. It was a cold day, and they wanted to grab the stupid girl that Sasuke wanted and to get the hell out of there.

Karin stiffened, her red eyes going to the fallen body of the woman. Entranced, she could not force herself to look away. White light was beginning to glow around the woman's frame. It glowed soft, like an aura at first. Pushing her glasses up against the bridge of her nose, she called out in warning before it was too late, "Sasuke!"

At the sound of his teammate's voice, he kept his brother in sight, but positioned himself to be able to glance at Karin as well. Irritation at being interrupted etched itself in his cold, unrelenting visage. Anyone else he would ignore, but he had long learned to listen to Karin's warnings. Even if she was annoying, she never interrupted a battle unless it was gravely important.

"The girl!" Karin pointed at Sakura's crumpled and bloody form. By the second, her aura was growing brighter and brighter. She didn't know how no one couldn't see her light. It was getting to the point of blinding.

The two males looked at the broken and bleeding girl. Sasuke scoffed, but then just as he was about to move into a fighting stance to attack his brother, deadly sharingan activated. Light, piercing and radiant suddenly sparked from Sakura just above her chest. The brothers both paused. Her back arching, her body lifted from the ground on the trail of pure white light. Sasuke's elbow went up to cover his eyes as did Team Hebi's. When the light disappeared, he removed his arm, a curse spilling from his lips.

Itachi, along with Sakura was gone. Twice Sakura had gotten in his way, whether intentionally or not. His brain tried to process what he'd just witnessed. This was Sakura for kami's sake. The whiny, teary eyed, too large of a forehead girl with weird out-of-place pink hair. The girl who had followed him like a love sick puppy even when he'd been rude and callous to her. This was the girl who had cowered, never able to stand on her two feet alone - always depending on the males of her team for protection. Team seven's weakest link. It came as a startling realization as the conclusion asserted itself. This Sakura was no longer someone he knew. She was no longer a girl, but a grown woman. Just like everyone else, she had changed. He found that he didn't like it, because within the blink of a second, the dynamics of his well-laid out plans had changed.

"SPLIT UP! FIND THEM!" The angry order echoed loudly. Even though he knew that not even Karin could track his brother, if his sibling didn't want to be found.

-o-

**A/N: **The **quote: **_"Some things only the weak can feel...but weakness does not make them secure. It's because they are weak, that they can develop kindness...and never look down on people..." _Is direct from the game Xenogears. The dream scene, was also based heavily off of Sophia's story from the game. For some odd reason, Sakura had always struck me as an old soul and I thought it'd be fun to write her in a bit of Elly/Sophia perspective. The italics there at the end, a lot of it was also direct from the game as well.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **I struggled with myself a lot over this story. A couple times I almost just took it down from fanfiction. I even wrote a few reviewers back stating I might. I know that it's a very different sort of tale. Then I remembered... _well_, that's just how I write them. My apologies for the lateness of it. Also there will be an author's note at the end, as I've added some elements and possibly **spoilers**.

**"Sakura" - **or Cherry Blossom is an omen of good fortune and is also an emblem of love, affection and represents spring. Cherry blossoms are an enduring metaphor for the fleeting nature of life **-From Wiki – **

**Summary: **What should have been a simple C-rank mission to deliver a scroll to Tea Country so a certain pink haired medic could take a break from a tedious hospital schedule became anything but. All within the breath of a moment.

**Disclaimer: **Naruto does not belong to me. Neither does Xenogears which inspired this plot.

**Chapter 2**

It was a strange sensation for him to hold the seemingly delicate woman in his arms. It was unlike him to bother with saving another person from their own stupidity. He had contemplated for a split second of leaving her behind, but for some reason, something in him rebelled at the idea of allowing his brother to have her. Itachi did not want to give his brother yet another weapon against him. He still had things to accomplish before giving his sibling his sought after vengeance. Her distractions had at least proved useful for the most part. It had been a shocking realization that the girl had been afraid of his brother, a person she had known as a child. But for all of his reputation, there had been no fear when she had turned face him. Even in the Tsukuyomi, a place where his victims curled up upon themselves when they realized where they were.

Then there was the question of the radiant light that had shone like a brilliant beacon from her body. It was a ridiculous thing to contemplate but he wondered if the girl was even human for fragment of a second. He glanced down at the face pressed against his chest. He could see the flutter of her eyelashes, and wondered absently if she was dreaming or if pain was disturbing her rest. Lightning based chakra tended to have a nasty effect on the human body. Her expression was strangely peaceful, and he decided that she must indeed be dreaming.

His thoughts drew inward once more, his usually alert eyes glazing slightly. He was a man who had chosen to preserve peace over the lives of his clan. His hands were so bloodstained, that not even heaven would forgive his sacrifice. He was forsaken, damned. His redemption in the form a brother whose life he spared in a moment of fleeting hope for the future. A brother who loathed him above anything else. The never ending mission that had nearly consumed his soul. Consumed him still.

This woman, had taken an unnecessary blow to protect him. A murderer. Then - she had the audacity to turn to him, with those vibrantly, warm green eyes of hers and told him to 'live.' He wondered what she would say, if he told her - that it was already too late. That he had died a long time ago. Unconsciously his fingers tightened, the folds of her clothing curling beneath the digits. He glanced down again, slightly startled by the cloudy green orbs staring up into his face with bemusement.

It was a strange Sakura thought hazily. Though unconscious she'd been aware of a warmth that had made her feel secure. Safe. The ebb of consciousness tingled at her brain and she found herself opening her eyes, squinting at the bright light. When reason began to reassert itself, she turned her head and her body completely froze when her blurry vision attached itself to an all too familiar black cloak, dotted with red clouds. Akatsuki. Itachi.

Her voice was scratchy, and somewhat achy when she asked him groggily, "Where are we going?"

She felt his body tense, and she in turn tensed. His expression was shuttered and closed off. Her lips almost twisted at the irony. The brothers were in some ways very much alike. His arms tightened around her slightly, causing her orbs to widen. Sakura would have struggled, but her body felt far too weak for such a thing. It was no wonder, after having the chidori impacting her the way that it had.

Sakura flinched when she felt a sudden slightly jarring sensation. Her brain told her that they had landed on the forest floor. She glanced up into stony features when Itachi finally chose to speak to her, "Do you have enough chakra to heal yourself properly?"

At the query, the medic side of her kicked on, and she immediately did a quick scan of not only her chakra reserves but that of her wound. She gave a stiff nod in response. She didn't have much energy to speak of, but it would have to do. Sakura would think about the rest later.

She felt herself being lowered to the ground. The leaves crackled beneath her weight. Sakura forced herself to rise to her knees. The area around her lips whitened with the pain, but no sound escaped her lips. She inspected the wound and was relieved to find that it was just a deep flesh wound and nothing vital had been touched. Green encased her hand as it hovered over the damaged skin and dried blood. Epidermis smoothed over and came together, the burnt and charred skin disappeared, leaving milky hued flesh behind. Her head felt light from the blood loss, but in the end she was fortunate that it wasn't worse than it was.

The memories of what had taken place between them, crawled about in her brain. She forced them back to deal with later. If she got out of this mess, and that's what she had neatly categorized it as, she would deal with that later. Sakura had no clue though, how she would explain her actions to her shishou. Should she ever make it back home, that was. She was as weak as a newly born lamb and at Itachi Uchiha's mercy.

"We need to get moving if you are finished. Sasuke and his team are still tracking us. I was able to divert them for now. Unfortunately, they are still blocking the way out of the peninsula."

Sakura looked up into his stony mask startled. So many questions filtered into her mind. Why was she still alive? Why wasn't he torturing her for information about the scroll? Why hadn't he just left her behind with Sasuke? It all came out as one simple word, "Why?"

The Akatsuki member's eyes narrowed on her but he didn't respond to her impassioned query. Instead he asked her the same, "Why?" Turning it back on her.

Biting her lip, Sakura could hardly explain it herself. The emotions that she had felt had seemed far removed from herself, and yet they had been so strong, she had moved without really knowing why she was moving. She shook her head, lifting her hand stained with her own blood burying her fingers in a tangled mass of pink tresses, "I don't know," and then her eyes went to his again, "I don't know why **– **I know I should hate you **– **for what you've done. I should have let him kill you but..." her body quivered beneath the startling intensity of his gaze, "Why am I not dead? Why didn't you leave me there at the mercy of your brother? It **–**" Sakura forced the nonsensical words to stop. She couldn't look at him anymore. The raw emotion in her gut twisted like a knife, almost painful in its intensity. She murmured to herself, "I didn't even recognize myself."

"You are a kunoichi. Your behavior was foolish. What you've done is considered betrayal to your country," the Uchiha's voice had grown hard. He ignored the questions he couldn't answer himself. He didn't know what to make of her, nor of the emotions that he had thought he had long buried, surfacing the longer he spent in her company.

Lifting her eyes, they settled on his hitai-ite and the slash that ran jagged through the symbol of Konoha. She looked away. He was right, not that she wanted to admit it. What in the hell had gotten into her? Even now she should be deathly afraid of this man, but there was no fear of him, no blinding hatred. A long time ago, she had professed to loathe him with every fiber of her being, had blamed him for Sasuke's defection -had sworn she would kill him if she'd ever have the chance. Then she had gone and protected him instead and could have gotten herself killed over it. It was mind boggling to say the least.

Clenching her fist, the squeak of her gloves a break in the looming silence. Her chakra was low, and she was at this man's mercy. A man who murdered his clan in the span of one night. She had made certain he wouldn't get what he was after. So why wasn't she dead? The self-recriminating smile that adorned her lips drew his attention, "I am foolish." The easy agreement had his eyebrows drawing together but he stood silent as she staggered to her feet and faced him, her knees wobbling with the effort, "So, what do you plan to do with me then? I will not hand over what you are after."

The direct challenge was spoken in such a nonchalant manner. It was a strange. To have someone else, weaker than him, not in the least bit afraid. It was the closest thing he'd had to a normal conversation in a very long time. He waylaid her questioning, "My brother and his followers are in pursuit of us still. It is time to get moving. Can you travel on your own?"

Sakura's brow arced at the re-spoken question. The fact that the Uchiha watching her hadn't tied her up, or left her to die, and was in fact being some what polite, well maybe polite was pushing it, but it wasn't at all what she'd expected. Not from him. Swallowing she said, "I can travel."

Sakura's head shot up, her eyes narrowing on his face when the male in front of her asked, "You aren't afraid. Why?"

"I don't know," she responded honestly and then, "I shouldn't even be following you like this. I should fight you tooth and nail to the death **– **but **–**" she felt somewhat ashamed to mutter the next part, "Your eyes **–**"

It was hard for her to admit something so silly. Sakura was not a young woman prone to flights of fancy. She liked cold hard facts. Evidence, and clinical deductions to puzzles. She wasn't a top medic nin for nothing. Sure, she had her precious people, that she loved just like everyone else. Sakura could even admit that she was just a bit out of place in the shinobi world. At the age of nineteen, she should be hard. Jaded. She'd seen death, had struck enemies down ruthlessly when it called for it. Yet, her compassion had never died. Which was too soft, even for a Konoha kunoichi of the medic profession. She had gotten stronger, yes, but there were times that she still felt weak. Not physically, but rather a feeling of out of placeness with herself. Of not quite belonging. Which was ridiculousness in itself. She was the disciple of a great sannin. A fact that she highly prided herself on.

"We must move." He averted his face, eyeing the treetops above them.

Her hands clenched at her sides, "I may be foolish, but I'm not an idiot. I don't think following you around is in my best interest."

"I could deliver you to my brother," his lips thinned, his patience with the daft girl drawing to a close, "I'm certain he would be pleased."

Her face paled at the threat. Green eyes darkened with pique and narrowed into cat-like slits, "You wouldn't do that. If that was the case, then you would have just left me with him and his little posse of followers instead of dragging me along."

Sakura's eyes caught sight of his shoulders tensing slightly beneath the black cloth. The look of stark impatience in his eyes made her realize she'd pushed him too far. She tried to step back, to give her time to line her limbs with chakra. She clenched her teeth when she realized that she didn't have enough to even travel properly. His hand snaked around her wrist and she lifted her chin in defiance. A gasp left her, when he picked her up once again. At first she froze, not expecting him to do such a thing. This time she tried to struggle, her limbs thrashing about wildly. He narrowly avoided a heel to the face.

"Woman! Your wounds will open again if you keep up your foolishness. Trying my patience will be the epitome of stupidity."

The subtle warning tinging his words slowed her tussling. She stopped completely when he looked into her eyes with whirring sharingan comma shaped pupils. Mutinously her chin tightened at a stubborn angle, and she looked away from the irritating man. Then a sudden thought hit her, why would he care one way or the other? Also, why would he go so far out of the way to avoid his brother and team Hebi? It's not like they could really stop someone like Itachi Uchiha.

Her lips thinned. This time she kept her curiosity to herself. If someone had told her that morning, that she'd end up in a class S criminal's arms being carried through the treetops, she would have laughed herself silly. Either that, or punched said person in the face. It really was ridiculous but at least she would have time to formulate a plan of escape. She refused to be bandied about by either Uchiha.

Tilting her head to the side slightly, her ears caught the call of seagulls. Her nostrils twitched at the briney scent of the ocean. Her green eyes widened in realization. He meant to avoid Hebi completely by taking a ferry across to the mainland. That would take them directly into Fire Country's territory. It was a brilliant idea, she mused. It was the surest way. For whatever reason she couldn't fathom, he hadn't killed her yet. It would be difficult even for someone like him to shield her from his brother's followers should they be ambushed.

Especially if he had decided to take her back to the Akatsuki for further questioning and needed her for the most part unharmed. It was the only thing that made sense. At that thought, a chill shivered its way down her spine. She still couldn't deduce why Sasuke had suddenly decided he needed her anyway. So many mysteries in such a short span of time. It was really all too much for the woman to take in.

Sakura finally spoke, "We are going to Degarashi Port aren't we?"

Itachi glanced down at her, and inclined his head slightly. When they finally came upon the bustling port town, he set her down on her feet. From their vantage point, Sakura could see the main road that would take them past the city gates. She watched with morbid fascination as he shrugged out of the black and red cloud speckled cloak. It was then that she realized that somewhere along the way, he had lost his straw hat.

He did a quick jutsu with his hands that Sakura's eyes couldn't quite keep up with, and the corner tip of the dark material caught on fire. Her lips turned into a frown as she watched it burn into ash. Why would he bother to do such a thing? He had walked into Konohagakure with no compunctions in the complete Akatsuki ensemble. He caught her curious gaze with his as he took off his forehead protector and stuffed it into a pocket. He gestured for her to do the same.

Sakura hesitated but when he reached to do it for her, she immediately spurred into action and removed it herself. Shoving it into her pouch, she folded her arms, and fixed him with a glare, "This is neutral territory. Surely you aren't 'Wanted' here?"

Surprisingly he didn't answer the question. He eyed her stoically from head to toe, the intensity of his eyes forced her to blush. She crossed her arms over her chest in a defensive gesture, and sent him a look that would have made Naruto balk. At the thought of her comrade, her heart ached. She really had to find a way out of this mess she'd gotten herself entrenched in.

Itachi watched the emotions flit over her face, blatantly giving away all of what she was feeling. This couldn't be the same woman who had brought a shinobi of Sasori's talent down. Her face was almost like an open book. He told her without inflection, "Make no effort to draw attention to yourself. You would regret it until you draw your last breath."

Sakura turned her face away from his dark probing eyes, "I understand." She knew he meant every word of that threat. She was surprised that he hadn't bound her with chakra. If he walked behind her, it wouldn't be noticeable to the normal populace. Nin would notice. But they would keep their nose out of their business. Especially in a neutral territory like this one.

He gestured for her to walk ahead of him. Stumbling to to the front, she stepped out onto the road, filled with traveling merchants. Sakura knew she was moving slowly, but her limbs were still aching from the electrical shock that had gone through her from the chidori. When some more more of her chakra returned, she'd have to fixed the residual damaged nerves. Strangely enough the male behind her, didn't seemed bothered by her pace. Once past the city walls, she made a quick sweep of the distant port with her eyes.

Sakura could see the ferries lined up. Amongst them, merchant ships were littered across the bay. Large crates were being sectioned off and stacked with trade goods by the dock workers. What caught her eye however, was the large ocean liner that stood like a giant amongst them. Her lips thinned into a thoughtful line. Her nose crinkling slightly as she surveyed the huge metal tub. She hadn't seen such a large ship since **– **her eyes widened, when she recalled just when she had seen a carrier like that.

Reminiscence colored her eyes. She wondered how Temujin was doing now. She had been no older then thirteen at that time. Gaara had just become Kazekage as well, she recalled bemused. Had it really been all that long ago? The whole fiasco with those, what were they called again? Gelel Stones and that crazy old bastard Haido. They had stumbled upon that ordeal because Naruto couldn't quite catch a ferret. Her lips turned up into an amused smile at the memory.

As they milled around town, Sakura's brain continued to try and formulate a plan of escape. Her stomach rumbled loudly, and she let out a soft sigh. She just couldn't think when she was this hungry. Hell, even a bowl of ramen sounded delicious. And with as much of the stuff she'd consumed over the years, just due to being on Naruto's team, was saying quite a bit on her part.

Sakura sighed. She had ditched her pack when she'd realized she was being pursued by none other then the man behind her. Her eyebrow ticked at the thought. That, had all her food supplies in it, not too mention her traveling money. She had a few coins in her pouch, but that would be barely enough to buy her a small bowl of white rice from a stand.

A small sound of surprise left her lips, when she felt the warmth of a large male hand on her back between her shoulder-blades. She glanced at Itachi, who wasn't even looking down at her but to the side. He guided her towards one of the food stands. She remained silent, relaxing when he finally removed the appendage. Her cheeks were still inflamed with twin specs of bright color when he handed her a styrofoam bowl of white rice, with an umeboshi sitting on the top. Immediately, her mouth watered. Her stomach rumbled again, telling her to get on with it. Her deeply ingrained manners surfaced and she murmured her gratitude when he handed her a pair of disposable chopsticks. She was rewarded by an arching of his aristocratic brow.

As they continued to walk down the street, eating the humble meal. Sakura noticed that she was on the receiving end of a lot of odd looks. Looking around herself curiously to see what the deal was, she finally glanced down and grimaced. It was no wonder. Her still blood stained skin peeked through the gaping hole in her clothing that had gotten burnt by the impact of the chidori. Even her cranberry hued vest and dark forest green jounin jacket couldn't quite hide the stain of her own blood. She probably looked like she'd gone through hell. Her lips twisted into a sour smile. In a sense she had done just that. Finishing up the last of her food, she tossed the trash into one of the city placed receptacles.

Meanwhile, they made their way down to the wharf. She stood on the wooden, craggy surface. Listening absently to the swoosh of water just below her sandal clad feet. She watched the seagulls waddle up and down the harbor, looking for leftover fish parts left behind by humans. An old man sat on a bench facing the wooden platform. She realized that he was tossing the bread out for the birds. He met her eyes and she gave him a small smile. He returned the gesture before turning his gray head away, returning to feeding the eager fowl.

The acrid smell of smoke that came from burning coal made her nostrils flare. She glanced at the huge ship next to her. It was even more impressive up close. Suddenly Itachi halted beside her. Her eyes narrowed on him wondering why he would stop. His face was turned away from her, and his nose was tilted upwards slightly. She thought about asking him what he was looking for. And then she felt it. It pulsed over her senses, and she took a small step back. She murmured out loud, "He's here."

"They were most likely able to track your chakra signature."

"How? I mean, I'm at my lowest right now." Sakura couldn't believe her signature would be track-able at this point.

"That woman with my brother. She is infamous for her ability to track," Itachi explained coolly.

"I wouldn't put it past them to attack in broad daylight." Sakura's green orbs met thought-laden obsidian.

"Hn."

Then, all of a sudden the two of them were suddenly taken aback by the painfully loud whistle from the large, ocean-liner. The massive boat was heading out to sea. Sakura recovered quickly, and making a quick plan of escape on the fly, she lined her shoulder with what chakra she could and rammed into the male at her side. Itachi caught the motion out of the corner of his eye, and moved to avoid her. Her shoulder glanced his, and he went spinning and hit the the ground hard, rolling on impact. She could feel her body protest from the forced exertion.

Ignoring the crowd watching them, Sakura used the last of her energy to run on the water after the massive ship. Lining her heels with the barest vestige of chakra, she was able to make it up the side of the ship. Just barely. She pulled herself up over the railing. She fell into a heap on the slim walkway, breathing heavily from the exertion. She felt a dribble of blood run down her chin and she wiped it away with the back of her hand. Curling her fingers over the metal railing she forced herself to stand to her feet. She propped herself up to see if Itachi would make chase once he recovered from her surprise attack. If Naruto had taught her anything, it was how to wing it when the occasion called for it.

Her gaze honed in on Itachi's black clad form, amongst the more colorfully dressed populace. He had picked himself up. In almost slow motion she could see the way his now red orbs zeroed in on her. Even with the distance the ship had put between itself and the shore, Itachi raced across the water after her. Without looking back, Sakura stumbled across the walk way, her body trembling from the effort. She knew she had to get out of sight. There was no way she could out run him.

Her fingers grasped at the knob of one of the many metal doors, and she was relieved when it opened for her. She let herself inside and quickly shut the door behind her. She set the deadbolt, which was a pathetic barricade from a nin of Itachi's caliber. She glanced around the gloom, and walked over to one of the many crates, and positioned herself behind it. Sliding down into a sitting position. Her eyelids were heavy from exhaustion and her head bobbed, but she refused to let them close and forced herself to stay awake.

She heard the knob rattle, and she stiffened in fear. Biting her lip, she forced herself to calm down. He'd give up and go back, she tried to tell herself. There was no way he'd continue to chase after her. It wasn't worth it. Was it? It was just a damn scroll to Tea Country. She hadn't even read the thing. Which he had to realize that she wouldn't have read the sealed document in the first place. She knew she had made him angry, but once they got further out to sea, he wouldn't be able to make it back on foot. Even now she could hear the rising thrum of the engines. She could feel that they were starting to pick up speed.

Her fingers curled into fists when the door slammed open. She slouched trying to make herself very small. Maybe he wouldn't see her, and would leave. Sakura absolutely hated feeling helpless more than anything in the world. Loathed it with every fiber of her being. It not only brought back unwanted memories, but it was something she had once worked so hard to surpass. A weakness that she desired to squash more than any other. Even when the odds were against her, she still never backed down. But today was just too much - even for her.

But now, her entire body quivered when she felt the lash of his signature sear across her senses. Emerged in shadow, she still felt his eyes hone in on her huddled form. Lifting her chin, she didn't dare look him in the eye. Fighting till the very end, she tried to back away from him. He was on her in moments. His hand shackled her wrist, pulling her ruthlessly to her feet. His voice was as cold as an iceberg in the seas surrounding the Land of Snow, "Did I not warn you?"

Defiantly she bit out, "What shinobi doesn't try to escape capture when given the opportunity?"

Before he could reply, a voice over an intercom interrupted them, "Attention! This is your Captain of the Thames. We are set on course to the eastern continent. Come to the upper deck for your assignments. Do not shirk from your duties! We are -" There was a bit of crackling and then the voice continued, "men of the sea!"

The fairly random announcement made them pause for a moment. Sakura rasped in abject disbelief when the reality hit her, "The eastern continent? This liner is way too large just to go to Fire Country. It's only half a day away from the port. He cannot mean -" her words came to a fumbling halt under the fierce glare from the male who held her prisoner.

"What is it?" Itachi's voice held a brittle quality to it, that made all the hairs on the nape of her neck stand on end.

A loud almost hysterical laugh left her, "And here I was thinking about _him _today," she knew tears were running down her cheeks. She also understood that Itachi was probably only a second away from pulling a kunai on her. Sobering she eyed him through the veil of her damp lashes, "I believe the captain was talking about - the continent on the other side of the ocean."

Sakura saw him straighten, and then he peered down hard into her face as if searching for something. The disbelief on his face following her explanation flickered in his eyes for a brief moment. If she had blinked, she would have missed the expression. They both nearly stumbled as the speed of the ship finally hit its peak and the horn blared its earsplitting call, deafening in its volume. He never let go of his hold on her, as he dragged her out the door uncaring that she was practically tripping over her feet to follow him. He went immediately to the railing. She lifted her head, looking far out over the expanse of the blue waters. She could already tell, that they were far too out now to make it back to land safely. She knew that his chakra reserves had to be dwindling low. He had not only fought, but he had also traveled hard that day to put a gap between himself and his sibling. The shore line always looked closer than it really was and he'd be taking a chance trying to run back with her in tow. They were already many miles out. Her chakra was all but gone, so she'd be no help in that department even if she wanted to be. If they did make it back, Sasuke would be waiting for them. It wasn't a good situation, either way. Especially if Itachi wanted to avoid him all together.

She wanted to shrink inside of herself at the dark look he sent her way. The retribution glimmering in those depths, finally instilled fear in her. The grip on her wrist tightened painfully. Sakura straightened her spine and sent back a hard look at him trying not to let her trepidation show through. It wasn't her fault that he had decided to pursue her.

Her shoulders drooped, her free hand went to her face covering her eyes. Her brain just couldn't take it anymore. Her mind had to be playing tricks on her. Just as it had been all day long. Today had to be some sort of nightmare. She let out a sigh, her body really was at its limit. She had no idea how she still was able to remain awake. The medic side of her was screaming at her the damage she could do to her body in this state. Her hand fell away and her arm hung limply. The only thing keeping her up was the man holding her wrist prisoner.

" - so tired," she released a bone-popping yawn and sagged against him.

Itachi stared at the woman thoughtfully. His anger subsiding for the moment. Her face was drawn and pale. She was obviously suffering from the effects of chakra depletion. The side of her chin was smeared with drying blood. She was slowly succumbing to her exhaustion. He was rather surprised that she was holding on as long as she was. Reflecting back on the day, he had no idea why he had bothered with her at all. He couldn't believe her use to his brother would be that much of a detriment to his plans. On the ferry to Fire Country, he had planned to thoroughly interrogate her by means of the Tsukuyomi, and leave her in a location that the ANBU would have found her easily enough.

It would have given him the way to avoid his brother. Itachi only killed when absolutely necessary. And though the pink haired nin was an irritant, there had been no reason for him to do such a thing. He knew in hindsight he should have at least bound her hands together with invisible chakra threads. It was normal procedure, but, after witnessing her strange reactions under extreme stress. He had been somewhat apprehensive to utilize those methods on her. He still couldn't analytically categorize the bright light she emitted. Even now, he could still envision the shock etched deeply in his brother's normally apathetic face in his mind's eye. It was obviously something his brother hadn't expected.

The practical thing for him to do was to take her back to the Akatsuki as amends for failing to retrieve the scroll. Pein would probably use her to draw out the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi. However, Itachi had already sacrificed so much to prevent a war from breaking out, and all for the well-being of Konohagakure. The idea was not one he could utilize for any sort of gain. At least it wouldn't be beneficial for him to do that. He looked down at the sagging female. Her eyes had closed. Her cheeks were still stained with drying tears. He could tell by the rhythm of her breathing she hadn't quite succumbed to unconsciousness quite yet.

This female was truly stubborn. His lips tightened with irritation. He would have never surmised that she would have such a strong will. He bent to prop her against the wall. He needed to figure something out. And quick. So intent on his thoughts, Itachi never noticed the person stalking up behind him. He barely registered the unexpected blow to his head. Staggering from the force he crumpled over, unconscious before he hit the ground.

**-o-**

_Itachi could hear the echo of approaching footsteps on the metal grid. As he was pulled under, he couldn't believe he'd been caught unaware by some pathetic civilian. He could practically hear Kisame laughing at his indiscretion. __His__ eyes closed and as he plunged into the darkness awaiting him. He allowed it to enfold him. It was like sinking into the depths of the blue abyss of the ocean itself, it seemed so vast. He floated there in the darkness. Consumed by emotions and memories that were not his own, and yet they were. A sea of many voices and blurred images of a time long past, tangible and yet he couldn't grasp them. Awake he hadn't understood anything, but in this place within his soul, he understood._

_That woman. Pink hair. Laughing green eyes. Compassionate. Strong. Stubborn. She'd always been the same. Trouble the moment he met her. Forever drawn to her. Irrevocable. Unexplainable. Two halves of one whole._

_Suddenly the darkness was awash in swirling fragments of color. He stood before a canvas, a paintbrush nestled between his fingers. Hands stained with paint. Dreaming – he was dreaming a dream. Perhaps a long forgotten memory. Things forgotten when one is awake. Where the deepest layers of memories become the outmost layers of one's dreams. Which are reality? Which are illusions? One cannot tell until one awakes. Or perhaps they are, at the same time, both truth and fiction. A vast nebulous – with no boundaries. An emptiness equivalent to his own existence. He dreamt such a dream. A long – never ending dream._

He could hear the last strains of the music box a servant had left open for Mother Hoshi. She was regarding him with worry in the depths of her emerald orbs. "Kioshi?" She murmured his name softly.

He averted his eyes from the paintbrush in his hand, and lifted his head to regard her. He could see the lines of strain on her face. A look she tried so hard to conceal from everyone around her. Even those closest to her.

Her smile thinned out into a visage of open concern, "You look tired. Maybe we should stop for the day."

Obsidian eyes searched into the depths of endless green. "I'm fine. Perhaps it would be best if we finished up for the day. You look tired Mother Hoshi."

"Stop it," the unusual sharpness to her tone startled him. He couldn't ignore the soft pleading in her voice, his heart twisted at the plaintive sound, "When it's just the two of us, call me Sakura. Like you used to. It isn't like you to be so stiff and formal."

He couldn't stand the sight of the sadness she tried so hard to conceal from him. He could see it glimmer at him from the depths of her gaze. Her eyes shimmered and he swore she was holding back how she really felt. He hated to think he was the one who caused her to feel that way. Her burdens were far too heavy as it was. His voice was tense and cold although he didn't mean for it to come out that way, "If that's what you want, Sakura."

_Sakura. It was a time when she went by such a name. A time when they had met up with one another. He had called her that, even before she introduced herself. It was a time when nothing mattered between them. It was better that way – just two people, together. It would have been better to have left it that way. _

Looking away from her, he began to pack his things. He needed to clear his head. He wanted more than anything else to just paint her forever. The emotions churning within him were dangerous. Not allowed. The distance between them was far too large, too vast to bridge. His hand clenched at his side, hidden from her sight. Finally he lifted his head, his voice was slightly hoarse when he finally spoke, "I need to return home. I should be back within a few days."

"Oh?" He watched as her slender fingers smoothed out the creamy material of her garment. He could see on her face, already, that she didn't want him to leave. She averted her eyes and wouldn't meet his gaze, "Is there something wrong?"

"I need to gather more pigments." He cleared his throat as he explained his reasoning to her.

"You are going to go so far just for that?"

He could see she was taken aback by his pitiful excuse. He knew it was a poor one. He turned his face away. He could barely stand to look at her. She was so beautiful, so perfect, sitting there with her hands still folded primly in her lap. He continued to explain, trying to make his excuse sound more convincing then he knew it really was, "If I don't. I won't have the right pigments."

"I see," she responded to him softly. He glanced back at her surreptitiously, seeing the thin, strained smile on her lips. She was still worried about him. He could see it in the tense line of her body, "Why don't you take one of my followers with you? You'll be safer. It's far too dangerous to travel alone."

He stiffened. His insides twisted at the affection in her tone. She was like that. Her compassion was his undoing. Grabbing his case, wanting to exit the premises as swiftly as possible, he replied before he could stop the words tumbling out of his lips, "I'll do that Mother Hoshi. Thank you."

Kioshi seen the look on her face before he shut the door behind him. The stark emotion that broke her professional mask, pierced through him like nothing else could. He sagged against the wooden frame. He buried his face in his hand as his emotions threatened to spill out, and take over.

_He had lied. He wasn't out of paint. He just feared finishing the portrait. He wanted to keep on painting forever. So he had bought himself some time. She'd probably despise him if she had known. No, she'd probably have just given him her usual smile. She was that kind of woman._

_Dreams. A life of a man named Kioshi... And the lives of countless other men. All but dreams. Those countless numbers of long, heartrending dreams were almost impossible to remember at all. In those dreams, he had loved but one woman. No matter the day. No matter the era. That did not change. Nor did her name._

**-o-**

Sasuke's onyx eyes followed the length of Karin's arm as she pointed out into the endless expanse of the ocean to the massive ship in the distance. Something ugly churned within him. It couldn't be? That wasn't the route the ferries took to the mainland. Activating his sharingan, he enhanced his sight. Was Karin telling him that they were on that ocean liner that had left the port not ten minutes ago?

"They are on that ship?" He turned to survey the redhead.

Mutely she nodded. Already she could see the signs of temper in his eyes, and didn't want to do anything further to provoke it.

Karin watched as Sasuke approached a worker on the docks. The lines of his body were ones of barely leashed violence. What was so important about that pink haired woman anyway? She was weird and obviously unique, sure. But she couldn't see the usefulness in her. At least not to the point of going through so much trouble. She would never have believed that she'd see the day that Sasuke go after another person over than that of his goal of killing his brother. She couldn't understand it. She had even seen the shock on Itachi's face. It was probably the only reason why Itachi had taken the girl in the first place. She had come to realize after playing the scene over and over in her head, that Itachi didn't seem after the girl for the same reason Sasuke was. She still couldn't quite figure out why Itachi had moved in front of the woman in the first place. Perhaps to spite Sasuke? Karin still thought the whole thing was bizarre.

"That ocean liner that just left. Do you know where it will dock next?" Sasuke asked a man about the same age as them. His tawny eyes lifted to regard the nin, while wiping sweat from his brow.

"Oh the Thames? Aye – it's headed to the new continent."

Karin felt her stomach fold into knots with dread. She could already sense the rage boiling beneath the exterior of his signature. This would not bode well.

"New continent?" Sasuke repeated lowly. He paused and then asked another question, "Is there a layover anywhere before heading out so far? At least to O'uzu Island for supplies."

The sailor scratched his head, surveying the other man thoughtfully. He shook his head in the negative, "Nay. The captain of the Thames always takes 'er straight over. It's a three month journey. But he takes more 'n enough so that he doesn't have to stop. That man loves the ocean more than anything else."

"How long until it comes back?"

Karin could hear the frigid quality in his voice. She knew there would be hell to pay. Sasuke was not a patient man. Not in the slightest.

Lifting his cap, the sailor lifted his eyes and stared at the sky while rubbing his chin, "Well, let's see. He'll first the dock in port. That ship is taking trade cargo. He is also slated to bring some back for Wind Country. It's just a guess, but with all that has to be done, he'll probably sit in the port for at least six weeks before returning. Possibly more, depending on how long it takes to get everything gathered. Why? Did you have a friend aboard that ship and you didn't get to say goodbye?"

Sasuke didn't answer, but pivoted on his heel and stalked back to Karin. He eyed her face, his visage strained, "Are you certain that they are on that ship? I cannot believe that my brother would go so far to avoid me. It's almost too ridiculous to fathom."

Adjusting her glasses, Karin averted her eyes unable to meet the searing gaze that rested on her features, "I felt a flare up of chakra just as we arrived in town. That woman's. It was just as the ship was leaving the docks. I led you here right away of course. Even then I could feel the faint signature retreating. Perhaps she struggled with your brother, and boarded the ship to escape him. He masks his chakra well. I cannot be completely certain if he is with her."

The sailor that Sasuke had questioned came forward overhearing their conversation. His hand was tightly gripping the broom handle as he approached them. Karin looked over Sasuke's shoulder to regard the man.

"Are you perhaps looking for a pink haired woman?"

Sasuke whipped around, to face the man again. He arched a brow, but dipped his head waiting for the man to continue. "Yes."

"We all seen her. It's hard to miss someone like that. She looked like she'd been through a battle - or something. She was dressed like a shinobi, so no one approached to see if she needed assistance cuz it ain't our business. She was with a man, dressed all in black." The sailor's eyes narrowed on Sasuke's face then, "Never seen anything like it. When the Thames was just leaving port, she knocked the man aside. No one could believe the strength in a woman so small. She ran over the top of the water, and up over the side of the ship. The man that was with her, went right after her. The Captain don't like stowaways. If he finds them – they'll be sorry."

With that the man shook his head, and ambled away to return to his job leaving the both of them somewhat stunned by the turn of events.

Sasuke met Karin's eyes. "Call Suigetsu and Juugo back to us. We are going to go after them."

Karin's eyes nearly bugged out of her skull, "But how are we going to do that?"

Sasuke eyed her as if he thought her to be dull-witted, "There has to be more than one ship going to the other continent. We will find one."

"But – that's so far away. Is she that important?" She couldn't quite keep the jealousy absent from her voice.

Sasuke merely smirked at her, "It'll be killing two birds with one stone. Both of them will be unprotected. Especially now since the Akatsuki will most likely believe that he has defected. Konoha will declare Sakura MIA. By the time we return with her, they won't be searching for her remains any longer. It's actually a fortuitous turn of events for – us."

Karin's lips twitched but she didn't respond. She nodded and turned to send the message to the rest of Team Hebi. The redhead was already mentally cursing the events that had transpired that day.

**-o-**

**A/N: **The visual of Sasuke's face I had when the sailor told him where that ship was going still amuses me. (Even though I'm the one who wrote this) So I hope it's still entertaining so far to everyone. And hopefully some things are making more sense as I'm fleshing it out further. I already know that some of you may be thinking, Itachi's reactions were really out of character for him. He should be more cutthroat, infallible ect. I am actually going by the basis of his profile in wiki (For the most part) That's all I'm going to say on that subject. As is everything, it's all open to how we interpret. All I ask for is an open mind as this story is going to probably be very different from the normal run of the mill stuff.

**Temujin –**protagonist in the second Naruto movie, **"Legend of the Stone of Gelel." **For those who haven't seen it, I don't want to ruin it for you, so I will just give the basic idea. In that movie, Temujin and the others with him came from far across the sea from an unknown land. It seemed in the movie, that the people from the opposite continents were either not really aware of each others' existence, or barely just. The technology itself was something unfamiliar to the shinobi as were the fighting styles the antagonists used. I've always thought that, afterwards, that trade would be opened up between them beneficially as I would think people from the continent where Naruto takes place would be curious enough to seek out this 'new' land. I could be totally off, but that's going to be some of the basis of this story.

The poetic prose in italics is all from Xenogears. I can't write poetry to save my life. Actually, in my highschool days, I shown some of the script to one of my teachers, who was a philosophy major and he couldn't believe that, something like that was in a 'silly little video game' as he put it. I could never recreate that feeling on my own, so I take absolutely no credit for it. That all belongs to Xenogear's creator and I'm happy to be able to share it with you all, but of course with a twist. Except for the first two paragraphs at the start of the break, of course.

**Captain of the Thames –**Xenogears character. He often called himself, "A man of the sea."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary: **What should have been a simple C-rank mission to deliver a scroll to Tea Country so a certain pink haired medic could take a break from a tedious hospital schedule became anything but. All within the breath of a moment.

**Disclaimer: **Naruto does not belong to me. Neither does Xenogears which inspired this plot.

**Chapter 3**

Vestiges of awareness began to permeate her conscious. The gentle dipping and rocking, the sloshing almost soothing sound of water against the shell of the ship reached her senses. The scent of rusty metal and the hard, uncomfortable surface beneath her was what pulled her from the bonds of restful slumber. Opening her eyes against the gloom, she slowly sat up.

At first she was confused, uncertain of where she was. As memories began to filter into her mind, her eyes scanned her surroundings. Her lips twisted into a thoughtful frown as her vision settled on metal bars. She realized with a start that she'd been imprisoned for some reason. The last thing she remembered clearly was Itachi yanking her up from behind the crate, and the announcement over the intercom. Everything else was hidden behind a half-forgotten haze.

She lifted a knee, and propped her forehead against the risen appendage. Glancing to the side, she noticed at the other end of the cell, Itachi lay on a suspended bed. It was the same as what she sat on. His eyes were closed, and his face was turned in her direction. She couldn't quite tell if he were awake or not. Rising to stand on shaky limbs, she did a quick scan of her chakra levels. A soft sigh left her lips. Her reserves were recovering, but far from full. Her system had taken quite a shock.

Glancing down, she realized that someone had confiscated her pouch that held her weapons, along with her jounin issued vest. A groan left the male, pulling her eyes back in his direction. Sharp green eyes caught the subtle quiver of his eyelashes. Step by step, she walked over to him. She leaned over precariously, her eyes zeroing in on the muscle jumping in his cheek. He was in some kind of pain, Sakura realized with a start. Then, she reasoned, that it was obvious that the people on the ship had to have done something to him to even have the remote chance to put him in a cell. Before she could quite stop herself, her doctor's instinct taking over. She did a quick, light check up on him as well.

Immediately she found the injury nestled in the back of his head. Sakura bit her lower lip. He'd taken a blow just behind his right ear. She was relieved when it was apparent he hadn't suffered from a concussion. She didn't even pause to ponder the relief for him that she felt. Malachite hued tendrils feathered and danced over him, and without truly thinking the action through completely, she quickly healed the swelling lump. She knew she should give her body more time to recover before doing something like this, but as things stood at the moment, they were both in the same mess. As the old adage went - keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. Not wanting to invest more chakra then necessary, she only attended to the worst of his bruises and abrasions he suffered from his fight with his younger brother.

Just as she was about to pull away from him, his hand snaked out and grasped her upper arm in warning. His eyes snapped open, his onyx orbs searching her pale face. His usually smooth tenor was gravelly from sleep when he chastised her actions, "Don't you think you've done more then enough kunoichi? Healing the enemy?"

Lips pursing, she fixed him with a withering glare, "It's not my fault you decided to chase after me. Was the scroll you never got worth it?" She mimicked his words, throwing them right back at him succinctly.

He sat up still maintaining his grip on her, visible signs of temper marring his usually pristine, emotionless mask. He said nothing at first. His expression smoothed over and the emotion was quickly concealed and under control. "We were both under pursuit. Why did you run from me?"

Her eyes narrowed and her brows snapped together, the skin puckering. Wasn't it obvious to him? He really must think she was some kind of idiot. Sakura's voice was sharp with rising temper, "Oh I don't know. Maybe I just didn't feel like taking a trip to the Akatsuki hideout to be interrogated and tortured!"

Finally he released her, and leaned back still surveying her with that expression that reminded her far too much of his younger sibling, "If that was truly something I was planning; do you think that I would have taken the route into Fire Country territory? There were other ways I could have chosen that would make far more sense."

At that, the edge of her ire began to cool down. Tilting her head to the side like a parrot that quite did not understand the words coming at her. She paused and then asked in a trembling voice, "Why would you do that? I still don't understand a lot of things that you've done. You jumped in between Sasuke and myself when obviously something like that wasn't in your best interest. Actually, it would have benefited you to let us fight it out, and then swoop in and pick us off in the aftermath. You put your back to an enemy kunoichi. Even genin know not to do something like that! Hell, it's not uncommon for a nin who believes if they're going to go down - why not take the enemy down with them in a blaze of glory. I was in no condition to run from Sasuke and his team, even if your distraction would have given me a head start. And you knew that."

He didn't reply but instead answered her question with his own query, his brow arching up in a way that gave away his aristocratic lineage, "I could ask you the same about many things." He suddenly stood to tower over her, a less then friendly smirk furling the left corner of his lip. She backed away to put space between them, but he stalked her like the predator he was until she finally stopped in the middle of the cell and held her ground, her chin sitting at a decidedly stubborn angle. He added coldly, "You lack the commonsense of a kunoichi your rank. You don't fear the things that you should."

Sakura could hear the hard note in his voice, but even still, as much as he held that menacing pose she just didn't feel any fear of him. It was like there was some deeply ingrained instinct that barred the emotion from coming out. Her brain, the analytical side of her, the part of her that was able to understand the complexities of science, and the intricacies of the human body - was screaming at her that she was losing her mind. If she had any ounce of self preservation in her, it demanded that she'd at least put distance between them. Her hand went to her chest, curling as if to shield herself from his presence.

The kunoichi began to speak slowly, more to herself at first than to the man who scrutinized her through obsidian flint, "You keep saying that. It's like you're warning me to feel a certain way about you, but -" Her teeth began to gnaw on her lower lip bruising the tender flesh, "It's just another one of those things that doesn't make sense about you. I feel like," she paused again, swallowing hard. She knew the next thing to come out of her mouth would sound insane, but she still voiced it, "You're trying to warn me away from - _you_."

"I have committed crimes that you couldn't even begin to fathom." The lack of inflection was not as startling to her as it should have been.

"I know." Even with that comment, it was like he was trying to place some kind of distance between them. Itachi. The Akatsuki criminal. She shook her head. The whole situation was beyond ridiculous. It wasn't like she wanted to bridge some imaginary gap between them. She hardly even knew the man for kami's sake. The only solid thing she knew about him, was that he had wiped out his entire clan in one night. Turning away from him to hide her expression from his far too perceptive gaze. Her eyes settled on a piece of crumbling granite on the other side of the room, "You've done so many terrible things. Things that I know even in my line of work, I couldn't begin to comprehend or even remotely understand. Yet, you do not behave in a manner that fits a person who commits them in cold blood."

Itachi watched the set of her quivering shoulders. What could he say to that? She was right in many of the things she said. He too, had done things that did not befit a man of his standing practically from the moment he'd met her. She was emotional, but astoundingly perceptive. Even Kisame, his partner had commented on Itachi's style of being such a clean killer. Kisame couldn't quite understand why Itachi didn't seem to want to extract the pleasure of hoarding his power over his enemies as the Mist nin often did. It was only out of respect for his skill that Kisame hadn't mentioned it more than twice. It was something that nearly all members, except possibly Pein loved to indulge in. Even still, he had eschewed all emotion, all traces of individuality to do what he was ordered to do. To exist in shades of gray. That was how he had survived.

"Sasuke told me that you told him the reason why you - did what you did, was because you were wanting to test your power. Your ability, if you will - against your clan." Sakura lifted her chin, but she couldn't bring herself to look into his eyes. She didn't want to see if she was going over the invisible line but this was the thing that had bothered her the most since the moment he stepped between her and Sasuke, "If you were really that kind of shinobi. I wouldn't be standing here - alive. You wouldn't have been detoured by your brother's team. After all, what are they compared to a seasoned Akatsuki member?" Finally her gaze met his when he didn't respond to the words she couldn't quite keep from tumbling out, "Hell I can admit that my actions were - odd. I should be afraid to be in this cell with you. You don't have to tell me that."

"What's the point in all your rambling kuniochi?" The question was spoken in a low and dangerous tone. The warning was unmistakable. She was goading him too far.

Sakura sighed softly and just shook her head. What had she expected in all that? As it was, she was probably fortunate that he'd said as much as he had to her in the first place. The Uchiha clan was not known for their talkative nature. A hand went to her hair. She was too wound up. She felt like there was a tight coil inside her about to snap open. What was it about him that made her emotions roll out of control?

Itachi finally spoke, "It would be wise to leave things left best alone - unsaid." It was the final warning he was giving her. Sakura recognized it for what it was. Her lips thinned, but she remained silent.

They both looked up at the sound of approaching footsteps. Sakura couldn't help the way she tensed up. As it stood, even if the two of them combined their efforts to break out. What could they do? It's not like they had any where to go but into the ocean. She swallowed nervously as Itachi stepped forward, to meet whoever it was approaching them. She knew that even with his chakra still not completely recovered, he could slaughter every single person on this ship, if he so desired to. A civilian had no chance in hell, should he decide that he didn't want to stay locked up down here.

Her hand reached out grasping his sleeve, fingers curling into the black material. It was a dangerous thing for her to do but it didn't stop her from doing it. He glanced back at her, the look in his eyes impenetrable. Sakura snatched her hand back breaking the contact, realizing that she was pushing things too far with him. Nervously she asked him in a low voice, "You aren't going to hurt them are you?"

The line of his lips thinned and if possible his eyes darkened with a flicker of emotion she couldn't quite label. He didn't answer her worry laden query but instead told her bluntly, "You truly are - a strange kuniochi."

She was about to ask him what he meant by that but the large, heavy metal door was opened. Sakura winced at the horrible squeaking of the rusty metal as it slowly slid open. A man, who looked to be about Kakashi's age stepped through the entrance-way. His black hair was peppered with streaks of gray that hung in a ruffled mass down to his white collar. He was tall and broad, his coat went down to his knees. Navy blue pants and shiny white boots completed the outfit. She eyed the many brassy polished buttons that trailed up the long jacket, her curious gaze lifting to the badge labeled Captain. He touched the black brim of his hat, and removed it from his head and placed it underneath his arm.

He was eyeing the two of them with flinty gray orbs. The two sailers who flanked him had a less than friendly look in their twin gazes. Sakura straightened her shoulders and blanked her face of all emotion with ease.

Finally the man spoke, "It seems my men were correct in informing me that the two rats that infiltrated my ship uninvited, finally woke up from their beauty sleep."

"Where is this vessel heading?"

Sakura glanced out of her peripheral, noting the relaxed way Itachi held his body quietly waiting to be answered.

The Captain let loose a grainy bark of laughter at their expense, "Ye mean to tell me ye boarded the Thames without even knowing where she was heading?"

"Unfortunately, that seems to be the case."

At the less then forthcoming reaction from the male at her side, the Captain of the Thames settled his thoughtful gaze on her instead. "What about ye lass?"

"All I heard was the announcement that the ship was heading towards the eastern continent. I assume you were speaking about the New Continent, or what the common folk refer as to the New World?"

"Ye assume correctly lass. So neither of ye knew beforehand. Why would ye bother then to try and hide away on this ship?" The Captain obviously was taken aback by their reactions. Then his gaze became suspicious, "Unless ye two running from the law?"

"Does this ship port before going into deeper waters?"

He shook his head at Itachi, "Nay. Yer on a one way trip."

"How long does the route take?" The Uchiha continued to interrogate the older man without the least bit of inflection in his voice.

"Three months."

At that tidbit of information the both of them stiffened.

Sakura stepped forward, her hands splaying out, "Why does it take so long? It doesn't seem that far from the maps I've seen - and this ship feels like it's moving quickly."

His tanned, leathery skin wrinkled as he contemplated the question. "Well lass, that simply be because we can't go straight across. Ye see, the waters be too violent from the storms to safely cut through those choppy waters. We have to go around."

"Do you plan on keeping us locked up the entire passage?" Itachi's voice was low as he asked this.

Sakura felt the hairs on her neck rise at the almost too smooth and calm sound. She nervously took a step to the side leery of his intentions. She wasn't comfortable with the knowledge that if Itachi decided to use violence to get his way - she was the only person aboard this vessel that had a remote chance of stopping him.

"Well that depends on the two of you. Just because ye seem to be saying this be some sort of mistake - doesn't mean yer meals and board should be free." He responded, his eyes flicking between the two of them. "Ye look like a solid young man, but the lass. She be a bit on the small side."

She almost wanted to laugh at the absurdity of what he was hinting at. He would probably be completely shell-shocked if he knew what she was truly capable of. She bit back a smirk that wanted to form. As it was, even at her current level of chakra, she could still break through these bars and snap that metal door in half should she have the inkling to do so.

Itachi spoke for her, still analyzing the situation and how to make the best of it. "She's a professional medic nin."

A flicker of interest entered the older man's eyes, "Ye both are nin?"

"Yes."

The Captain ran his fingertips down his shortly cropped beard. He then crossed his arms, and smiled at them in a toothy grin, "Well then, I guess ye stowing away on this ship wasn't such a bad thing. Ye see..."

Sakura's eyes nearly bugged out of her head, when the sailors stepped back and the Captain then proceeded to pose, not too dissimilar to that of Gai, truth be told. She would have laughed had it not been so absurd.

"Even though I am a man of the sea -" he continued to flex and then stopped to look at them with such a serious expression, Sakura wondered if she had just imagined the ridiculous posturing, "Ye probably realized this be a cargo ship. As we start to get closer to the other continent, we might run into the problem of pirates."

"Pirates?" A pink brow shot up. Those still existed?

"Aye. It hasn't happened yet that the Thames has been boarded, but I've heard rumors that the problem has been getting worse."

"A simple enough agreement." Itachi told the Captain without inflection in his tone, "In return for our services, equal payment of room and board. It is acceptable."

The Captain of the Thames pointed a look at them that bode no quarter, "If either of ye try any funny business. I'll send ye both over the side to swim with the fishes."

Sakura folded her arms and tilted her head to the side, "Fair enough."

A couple more moments waned between them, and then finally the Captain nodded. He snapped his fingers and pointed to the cell door. The guards at his sides opened the door. He then said, "You'll be shown to ye quarters. We'll get ye some fresh working clothes." He paused eyeing Sakura's torn outfit that had seen better days, "We'll discuss yer assigned duties further after supper has been served."

With that, he pivoted on his heel, and left them standing there with the guards. The sailor on the left, a young man, probably not much older than Naruto gestured for them to follow him. Exchanging a look amongst one another, they followed the sandy haired male quietly. Sakura's gaze traveled the length of the iron corridors. She'd never seen so much of the metal in her life. She was a bit relieved to find that they had a working elevator on this massive ship. She was in shape, but traversing up and down the length and width of this massive metal tub would definitely tire anyone out.

In the elevator the man began to explain, "Bottom level, where you both came from is what we refer to as the brig. First and second floors towards the bow is the living quarters. Both those floors have a laundry room. Third floor on the west end has the mess hall and the first aid room. The rest is cargo hold. Do not wander those areas unless given express permission by the Captain himself."

"Understood." Itachi responded.

Sakura said nothing, she only nodded when the man's eyes fell on her to indicate that she was paying attention to what he was telling them. The elevator came to a jarring stop. The doors slid open, and he led them down the long hall of the second floor. Finally, he stopped in front of a door with part of its numbers missing. He gestured with a free hand, "All other living quarters have been filled. This is the only bunker still vacant."

Her heart sank in her chest. Was he telling her that she would be sharing living space with Itachi for the next three months at the very least?

The sailor caught the visible signs of discomfort on her face, his frown deepened, "Ma'am, you are one of only five other woman on board the Thames currently. Their quarters are full. We are all required to share living areas, except for the Captain himself. There was no where else to put you miss. The two of you will also have to share the toilet and shower room." He waved a hand dismissively then, "Dinner in the mess hall in an hour."

At that he clicked his heels together, his boots squeaking against the polished floors as he left them standing there watching his retreat.

Sakura didn't know if she wanted to laugh or cry. Here she was, out in the middle of kami knows where, with one of Konoha's supposedly greatest enemies whom she was now going to be roommates with. She had no way to send a message back to the village to let them know she was all right.

Her chin lifted when he opened the door. He strode into the middle of the room, and flicked the switch. The room was bathed in light. When she strode in, she quickly took note, that one each side two bunks hung suspended from the wall, not unlike the beds in the cell. These had mats, and each held a pillow and a rolled up blanket. Going further in, she opened the small wooden door at the back. Peeking into the dimly lit shower room, her eyes fell on the plain white, chipped porcelain sink and toilet. The shower itself was an open area to the right back corner, with dull green tile. There were two shower heads, one on each side of the stall.

A sigh left her. It could be worse she supposed. She had shared a room and a tent with men on more missions than she could count on both hands. The only difference lay in the fact that they were actual comrades and friends.

Sakura glanced back when she heard another person enter the room. The other sailor she'd seen with the Captain before came forward with sets of fresh clothing for them, and toiletries, for which she was eternally grateful. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, combs and a set of towels complete with a bar of soap, shampoo and a stick of deodorant sat nestled on top of the linen. She felt so grimy that the thought of a hot shower was almost enough to make up for some of her discomfort of having to share a room with a near stranger. Even if the said stranger was Itachi Uchiha. She reached out and took the items from the man with a natural smile that brought a blush to his cheeks. "Thank you."

"It's no problem ma'am. Let me know if you need anything else."

She continued to grin in her usual easy and friendly manner giving him a quick nod before he left. She turned and sifted through the items ignoring the nin watching her with a raised brow. Sakura grabbed the smaller set of clothes. It was a bit primitive, but the undergarments were bindings for her breasts, and she'd been given a pair of man's boxers. She didn't care because just the fact they were clean was good enough for her. She tossed Itachi his set, and fumbled through the toiletries.

"You are rather cheerful despite the circumstances."

Sakura turned and gave him an open smile that took him by surprise. "I've learned to be grateful for what I do have, instead of complaining about what I don't have. This isn't the best situation obviously, but it's not the worst it could be either," she gestured towards the room, indicating the ship itself. "What really bothers me is knowing that I'm going to cause my friends and family to worry about me unnecessarily and that there's nothing I can do to alleviate that."

"Your lack of concern for your own welfare seems to be a personality trait of yours."

Still smiling, she shrugged one shoulder before responding with a small laugh, "Occupational hazard." Sakura watched his usually stoic visage crack before he subjected her to a look of hard scrutiny.

The smile on her face faded, and she tilted her head to the side wondering why his expression had changed so suddenly.

"You -" he paused as if not quite knowing how to word what he wanted to say.

"While you figure that out. I'm going to go take a shower," her lip curled showing a glimpse of white teeth. She fixed him with a look that spoke volumes. After having been on an all male team for so long, one member of which was the student of a pervert, and Kakashi who was openly perverted with no shame. It was habitual for her to give a warning after she had caught a curious Sai peeking in on her not long after Kakashi had explained such a thing was normal, while goading the young man straight faced to give in to his curiousity. So she did what came naturally, not really thinking much of it. "If I catch you so much as peeking," her hand balled into a fist and she lifted it for effect. She shook at him before stalking off into the bathroom and slamming the door shut behind her.

Itachi's brows shot up into his hairline. Did she just make small talk with him and then in the next breath threaten him? He frowned. The woman didn't seem the least bit nervous about being in close proximity with him in the least. He had to wonder how she had survived all these years with her lack of self-preservation. He had always thought it was a natural, and quite a necessary quality for a shinobi to have. He still couldn't quite believe that for her, the worst thing for her about the situation she was in - was that she was more worried about how her friends and family would feel when they discovered she had disappeared.

She was far too at ease being around someone who was in retrospect a threat to those she cared about. He knew from reports that she was the teammate of the Jinchuriki. From what he'd seen from her, he deduced that she would be very protective of those she cared about. It would make more sense for her to be a bit more abrasive with him. He wondered if it was just a coping mechanism for her. He shook his head. The woman was really a mass of walking contradictions. Itachi came to the conclusion that he probably would never quite understand the perplexing, and very odd female.

In the shower, Sakura let the hot rivulets of water wash away the grime, and the remaining traces of dried blood. Bracing her hands against the tile. Her mind was racing. She could feel her eyes burning but she refused to let the tears escape. Her nails scraped against the hard, green surface. If only she hadn't tried to run, she wouldn't be in this mess now. Fate must be somewhere laughing his proverbial ass off at her expense. Gritting her teeth, she straightened the line of her body, and finally began to soap up her skin. There was no use crying over spilled milk. It was just ironic that she found herself mixed up in this situation with Itachi, because Sasuke had chased them down and cornered them. A bitter laugh left her throat. Fate really was a bitch.

She still couldn't figure out what it was that Sasuke wanted of her. She highly doubted he wanted a team Hebi medic. It had to be something big if he had went for her first, over that of his brother. She looked at her hands, palms facing up. Sakura couldn't understand what it was that Sasuke thought she could give him. Well the way the things stood now, it was more than likely she'd never find out what had driven him to come after her. Itachi's confused visage swam into her mind's eye. She knew he'd expected her to be more cold and withdrawn. Truth be told, it would make sense for her to treat him like she had a chip on her shoulder. It just didn't seem conducive or beneficial to behave that way with someone she'd have to share such a close proximity to for such a long time. She knew that he was apart of the organization that was after Naruto. He had hurt Kakashi in the past. It wasn't like she'd forgotten and was okay with it. Far from it.

It was just the run in between her, himself, and Team Hebi had hinted at there was more to the situation that used to have a definite answer. Itachi Uchiha had planted the seed that had spurred Sasuke on the path to eventually defect. But, in the end, Sakura knew that Sasuke still had chosen to turn his back on the people who had truly cared about him, instead of trusting in the fact that she, Naruto and Kakashi would have done all they could to help him come to terms with his deeply troubled past. His betrayal of their friendship wasn't something she could completely blame Itachi for.

The simple universal law of action and reaction had long spiraled out of control, and now she was caught up in the middle of it for reasons she'd no clue about. The puzzle pieces weren't quite fitting together like they were supposed to. Even she herself, hadn't conformed to her usual standards when she'd face one of Konoha's enemies down. So much didn't make sense, and even though she was trying to mentally grasp at the threads of understanding, they remained completely out of her reach. There were too many missing fragments to the puzzle to put it all together to get the whole picture. Sakura shook her head, sending droplets of water flying. Maybe her mind was playing tricks on her again. She still couldn't explain her behavior. There were just too many questions and not enough answers.

**-o-**

Tsunade's honey brown eyes were fixated on the dwindling contents in her cup. Her fingers tightened slightly when the ANBU team she summoned arrived. Angling her chin upwards she gestured for them to remove their masks and to come closer. Naruto's was the first to come off. He held the fox mask in his palm. The whites of his eyes were pink with fatigue. Kakashi followed suit, his posture in its deceptively lazy pose.

"Do you have anything to report on - this missing person's case?" Tsunade's voice gave away her weariness.

Kakashi crossed his arms, his eye coming to rest on her face, "Yes - but it's really hard to believe."

At this Tsunade straightened up in her chair at this disclosure. She braced her elbows on the desk and cradled her chin in her hands, "We'll figure something out after you've completed your verbal report."

Naruto reached into the billowing folds of his cloak, and then after some rustling beneath the black fabric he pulled out a straw hat that was an all too familiar sight. He tossed the crumpled kasa on her desk.

Tsunade sucked in a sharp breath. Worry for her pupil who was like a daughter to her settled like a heavy weight in her chest. Her fingers grasping the hard edge and slowly she lifted the conical straw hat and flipped it over. She breathed out one word. "Akatsuki."

Kakashi dipped his head, "We were able to pick up her trail, after being led to the scene by the tracker on the scroll." He pulled the document from his cloak and set it down on the wooden surface next to the hat, "It was stuffed into a knothole in a tree. It had rained fairly recently so her scent was almost completely gone. From her zig-zagging trail it was obvious that she was chased down and eventually was cornered near a ravine."

Naruto was white-lipped by the time Kakashi had finished explaining the first half. He hissed at the older man, his patience thin, "Get on with it! Tell her about..."

"I am getting there Naruto," Kakashi fixed him with a withering glare before turning his attention back to the Godaime whose knuckles were white with tension, "Pakkun informed me that there were human scents he didn't recognize - but there was one other than Sakura's that he identified. Apparently not only was an Akatsuki member present, but Sasuke Uchiha."

Tsunade drew in a harsh breath, "That narrows down the identity of the Akatsuki in question."

Kakashi dipped his head in agreement, "It was obvious by the damage in the area that there had been a fight. Then, the trail picked up again, and led us straight into Degarashi Port, though it wasn't Sakura's scent that Pakkun trailed but Sasuke's. After we left the area her trail seems to all but disappear. We questioned people in the town, and several people remembered seeing a pink haired woman. Those who had seen her, said they seen her with a man dressed in black with dark hair and eyes. Everyone pointed us in the direction of the harbor. We questioned the dock workers, and one man said that he had witnessed her struggle with the man with her. She then from what he said, boarded a large vessel, but the man went after her. He mentioned off-handedly that there was another person who inquired after her. When I asked what this person looked like, his description fit Sasuke Uchiha and the female member of Team Hebi."

The Hokage picked up her cup of sake and downed the rest of it in one large swallow. She knew that she was going to need a drink after the next set of information. She could practically feel it in her bones. Finally she asked in a tight voice, "Where is the boat headed?"

Naruto's pale face caused something within the confines of Tsunade's chest to tighten with dread. He replied tonelessly, "To the New Continent."

Her fingers tightened over the now empty cup, the clay crumbled to pieces beneath the sudden pressure. Without hesitation, she broke the seal on the document. The men watched as her eyes skimmed its contents, and the rising signs of temper on her face made them both a little nervous. A loud curse left her lips and she sent a fist through the center of her desk. Kakashi and Naruto backed up a step, flinching as they were made to dodge flying splinters. A set of guards came to check up on the ruckus but were sent away immediately by the Godaime. She stood up, her eyes falling on the ANBU members' faces.

Kakashi watched with interest as she suddenly did a jutsu to seal off the sound coming from the room. She asked softly, "Where is Sai?"

"He remained behind in Degarashi Port with Pakkun. He's finishing up the investigation."

"It's just as well," she walked around the broken remains of the desk, lacing her hands behind her back as she strode towards them, "I'm going to tell the both of you information that cannot leave the confines of this room. I will need an oath of silence from you."

Naruto and Kakashi remained silent, the curiosity at what would require such an extreme reaction from the Hokage. The pair nodded, each swearing to maintain absolute secrecy.

"Not long after I was sworn into the office. I sifted through much of the Sandaime's belongings that hadn't been moved out of the tower and had most of it moved out, and of course taken to his remaining relatives. I thought I'd seen the end of it. Until -" a smirk adorned her features, "The desk I just crushed is not the original. It was a couple months into my duties that I lost my temper for the first time, and to Shizune's dismay I crushed what she deemed a national antique. I refused to let her clean up the mess I made. I needed something to do to let my temper cool. I came across the former Hokage's diary buried among the wood pieces."

A blond brow lifted, and Naruto chortled unable to help himself, "The old man kept one of those girly things?"

"I would have never found that hidden compartment if I hadn't put my fist through the desk," Tsunade's lips twitched with remembered amusement, "So I decided that I'd give it to Konohamaru. He had taken his grandfather's passing the hardest I think. But before I had the journal sent to him, I skimmed through it to make certain there was no information that shouldn't be made public."

"You found something shocking I take it." Kakashi interjected dryly. He can only begin to imagination the contents in the Third Hokage's personal record of his thoughts.

"Most of it was his feelings on certain laws and such that he had to pass, but -" She shook her head at the memory. "What I found completely floored me. It pertains to the Uchiha massacre." This got their attention like nothing else could "It really hit the old man hard, and I couldn't figure out why other than the obvious reasons until I read further..." she paused, taking a deep breath before plunging into the truth, "The Uchiha genocide was not an act of a criminal in the making, but came down as order from the Elders."

She watched the blood drain from the mens' faces. Naruto burst out, "What do you mean? Are you telling me that Konoha was responsible for all those murders, and all this time Sasuke thought that -"

Tsunade dipped her head, "The Uchihas' apparently were planning a coup d'etat to take over Konoha. It was to avoid a civil war from breaking out. Sarutobi tried to reason with the clan through the Military Police Chief who was in fact Sasuke's and Itachi's father. When they couldn't come to any form of agreement. The council ordered Itachi Uchiha to kill every blood relative of his clan. He refused to kill his youngest brother, and in return for his brother being able to remain protected by Konoha, Itachi Uchiha was tagged a criminal and would take the whole of the blame. It seems the former Hokage regretted the decision in the aftermath, but he was unable to speak to anyone about it obviously. Instead he wrote the whole sordid affair down to release some of his guilt - I suppose. I tore out those pages and burned them. There was nothing else of interest, and so I had it sent to his grandson."

"That explains many things that I'd often wondered about," Kakashi shook his head, his face drawn and still pale from the startling news, "But why are you telling us this now? What does it have to do with..."

She broke in, interrupting his line of questioning, "I was the one who sent Sakura on that mission to Tea Country. The mission was classified as a C-Rank, and I felt she needed a break from the hospital so I sent her as a way of getting her out of town for a bit. After reading the contents of the scroll..."

"How would Akatsuki have gotten information pertaining to such a thing..."

"After I found out the truth, I went through all classified documentation I could find on the Uchiha clan, on Itachi Uchiha of course. There was nothing. Not one blasted thing," she ran her hands through her hair, "I believe that it's possible that we have a leak, but not one we'd suspect. Danzo and the Konoha council were the ones who'd given the order. The contents of the scroll were written by the council. It's possible that Danzo found out what they were planning and disagreed with them. So he leaked just enough information to make sure it was intercepted."

"Why would he do that?" Naruto crossed his arms across his chest, "He could have just sent Root out to take care of it."

"He didn't want it traced back to him most likely. I'd like to strangle those old bastards. That document should have been sent by more secure means. I'd like to say I can't believe they went behind my back, but it's not the first time, nor will it be the last."

"What was in it?" Naruto's curiosity was getting the better of him.

"It was to be taken to the neutral hidden shinobi village. They are wanting to form another solid alliance to deal with the remaining Akatsuki members, and Team Hebi, which as you both already know have been interfering with Konoha lately for reasons still unknown to us."

Kakashi had crossed his arms, enmeshed deep in thought. Finally he lifted his head, his eye on Tsunade's face, "I understand the correlations you are making but what is it that you want us to do. I can't however see why you would inform us of something like this, considering the circumstances..."

A smirk settled on the blonde woman's lips, her brown eyes held an enigmatic quality to them that Kakashi could quite read. "I'm tired of the council going behind my back. It's time to return the favor. They are always foaming at the mouth about my decisions of allowing Naruto out of the confines of Konoha. So in light of the situation, I am sending you on a covert mission. On the outside it will seem like an extended retrieval mission, but - as I know my pupil very well. I know that she will do whatever she can to get back. I'm interested in finding out if Itachi Uchiha still maintains any loyalty to Konohagakure. I'll let those old bastards think what they like for the time being."

Kakashi's eye narrowed on the older woman, "That's a dangerous undertaking. He's been in the service of the Akatsuki for over ten years..."

Naruto was chewing on his lower lip, but then he shook his head, "I disagree. There's been several times we've ran into him and he's never killed any of us when he had the chance to. He's always 'failed' to bring me back to the Akatsuki. When I think about it, if I made such a big sacrifice to protect Konoha, I don't think I'd betray something like that. We know that Sakura's still alive -"

"Normally I'd agree. But just think about what he told Sasuke. He's the reason why -"

"Maybe what he really wants is for Sasuke to take his life someday to atone in some way. They were his family too," Naruto pointed out, in his unique and perceptive manner, "Perhaps it was better to even take his younger brother's hatred, instead of leaving him in complete despair. He gave him a reason to keep on living."

Tsunade smiled at Naruto, at the softly spoken words. Her eyes gentled as she gazed at the boy turned to man. There were times that she was still amazed by Naruto's ability to reason out why people would do the things they do. He had always had that knack. Even as a young child. His logic existed on a whole other realm sometimes. She met Naruto's azure gaze, her expression smoothing into seriousness, "I think that if we could find out more about - everything. We can finally bring this chapter to an end. Sasuke's desertion has hurt Konoha in many ways over the years, not just the people he left behind. If Itachi would be willing to work something out with us - it would finally end this struggle with our enemies that continue to hunt you Naruto. Can I trust you to take care of things should he refuse as well? It's possible that Team Hebi would be in pursuit of them - there's a lot of things that could go wrong. I won't give the order if you don't think you can handle it."

"You would risk trusting him even if he does 'agree'?" Kakashi bit out, unable to hold back the small burst of temper. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. No matter what had occurred in the past, he could only think of the good shinobi who had fallen to Akatsuki over the years.

"It's certainly a gamble," Tsunade's lips curved into a knowing grin which further served to irritate Kakashi, "But I'm willing to bet the stakes on this chance. This silent war between us and our enemies has been drawn out for so long that it's time we take it out of the higher ups hands once and for all. For every Akatsuki member we've taken down, they've replaced, or got stitched back together or whatever. We've been unable to track them down. We lost our best informant to their leader. Jiraiya was always been the one to bring us information we needed. Any other spy we've sent into the field to investigate has either disappeared, or has been found deceased. Suna has not had any more luck then we have. The other Hidden Villages we're allied with have told us over and over they will stay out of it and want no part of it. They don't believe in our ability to protect them should the Akatsuki decide to attack. It's even come down to the Elders trying to make some kind of deal with a neutral territory which could put us in a war - should any outsiders find out and leak it to the wrong person. Relations between the Hidden Villages have always been strained. It's common knowledge that many dislike Suna's and Konoha's Alliance. We are the two biggest and most powerful of the Hidden Villages, thus we are a threat in their eyes. If they see us trying to gain more alliances beyond the peace treaty, it could prove detrimental to us all..."

"I'll do it Tsunade-sama." Naruto nodded at Tsunade, his gaze on her face earnest. "You're right. This is the best way. I can't say I like it much either, but nothing we've done so far has worked."

"Say Itachi Uchiha does agree to our terms and is willing to work with us," The last part Kakashi spat, not happy with the way this was going. He still blamed Itachi for Sasuke's complete defection and final mental breakdown. "He is but one shinobi."

"One shinobi who could be our ace in the hole." The Hokage added, "If you have any better ideas Kakashi Hatake, I'd be more than happy to hear you out. Kami knows, I've been searching for a viable solution to this for years. Honestly I've played with the idea about trying to contact him for a long time, but the situation has never presented itself until now. You three are among the few shinobi I can absolutely trust not to run to the council and tattle," brown eyes sharpened like steel as they landed on the silver-haired male's stiff visage, "I can't even trust Shizune to keep her mouth shut. She's put Naruto in a hard place with the council more times than I'd like to count. If I have you take this mission it will settle the council's bitching down for awhile since Naruto would definitely be out of Akatsuki's reach for at least six months. It would give me time to make other - preparations as well. However Hatake if you can't handle it, I will send Naruto and Sai without you."

At the underlying threat in those words, Kakashi's right hand fisted at his side. He finally nodded, "You're right, I don't have any better ideas - but I swear to you - if Itachi Uchiha so much as gives me the slightest suspicion that he's going to betray us - or refuses us outright. I will take him out personally..."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Tsunade nodded at the bristling shinobi. "It will be taken care of then. I'll fill out the documentation to be filed for Sakura Haruno's retrieval and undercover mission under Team Kakashi. I want you gone by morning. The usual provisions will be delivered to you at the gate at sunrise. It is also acceptable to inform Sai of the details later - but make sure he understands to keep all confidential information to himself until otherwise noted."

Naruto and Kakashi both placed their masks on their faces and saluted the Godaime. She completed the jutsu to remove the wards and in a puff of smoke the two ANBU were gone. Shizune finally came twittering in, lecturing the Hokage about breaking the desk, and dipping into budget costs once again. Tsunade merely smiled and nodded while retrieving another bottle of sake. After all that, she really wanted nothing more than to get thrashed, to Shizune's dismay. Tsunade felt that it was about time someone rose a glass to the idea of some severely needed change. It was time to let the younger generation lead the way.

**-o-**

**A/N: **Sakura is too sharp for Itachi's own good is all I have to say hehe. I hope the story continues to be interesting to ya'll. Ciao for now! Until Chapter 4!

**Kasa** - hat


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hello! Here's a chapter to show that I haven't forgotten about this story. And before the New Year to boot! I hope everyone enjoys.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Naruto – so on and so forth. **

**Chapter 4**

Sakura listened absently to the sound of her heels clicking against the metal grated flooring beneath her booted feet. She hefted the box in her arms, shifting the weight, keeping up her brisk steps. Of all the duties she'd been given to perform, she hadn't quite expected this one. The container held herbs that she was to make into herbal concoctions for the sailors that suffered sea sickness to take. She couldn't help but wonder, why would anyone take a job on a ship if they suffered from such an ailment? It wasn't pleasant, and though most people eventually adjusted, not everyone was able to.

It was fortunate for them that she'd boarded the ship, she thought to herself. She found out from one of the sailors that the doctor they'd hired had actually quit three days prior and that they continued with their plans to leave port into the sea without hiring anyone to take his place just to keep with the rigid schedule they were expected to maintain. It made her somewhat curious as to what the cargo could be. It was risky in her opinion to be out in the deep waters of the ocean for so long with so many people without a certified doctor of some kind on board.

Her head lifted slightly when she noticed Itachi coming towards her from the opposite direction. Her green eyes took in the sweat lining his temples and the shirt sticking to his torso. His cheeks were a little more pallid than was normal for him. She didn't know exactly what kind of work they'd given him, but it was probably some kind of physical work. Even though he was a shinobi, it was obvious that he wasn't used to the kind of tough labor that a working ship entailed. Chakra could aid someone in getting through the day until they were used to it, but it could only help a person so far. His eyes met hers but then flicked away, focusing his attention on the other side of the hall.

Sakura said to him in her best stern medic voice, "Make certain that you are drinking plenty of water. You're a bit paler than usual." Her eyes continued their sharp appraisal.

His dark gaze met hers once more. He paused and gave her a minute nod, before striding away.

Sakura shook her head as she continued on her way to the medic's office. Ever since they'd boarded a week ago, he'd gone to mostly ignoring her. Which was fine with her, but she found it rather childish of him. It's not like she wanted to make friends with the man. He was someone who had hunted Naruto like he was some kind of animal. Just because there were things that didn't quite add up about him -- didn't mean that she wanted to delve deeper than she already had. So she simply treated him like she would anyone else that she was vaguely acquainted with. She knew it was rather un-kunoichi of her. It was just that her years as a doctor, with having people's lives in the cradle of her hand, on the edge of life and death on a regular basis had taught her on many levels to take life as it comes. One step at a time. It wasn't that she was indifferent, she still couldn't figure out why she had behaved the way she had in the woods. It had mollified her slightly that his behavior had been just as odd, even if he wouldn't admit that his actions were just as bizarre as her own.

Angling herself to the side, she grabbed the door knob to the first aid room and let herself in. She set the box down on the pristine marble gray counter. Relieving the box of its contents, she set them all aside and put them in order of use. Washing her hands, she pulled the mortar and pestle to her. Sakura quickly set to work. She knew that the occupants that were utilizing the herbal remedy would soon be out of the first batch she'd made. Her nostrils flared as the scent from the herbs she was crushing reached her nose. She didn't envy the people that had to take it. She knew that the concoction was rather bitter even when mixed with tea.

Just as she was dividing the portions into individual bags to be handed out, a hard knock echoed at the door before being flung open.

Her head shot up, eyes widening when a sailor stumbled through. He was bent over in half, his chest heaving. He gasped out, "Hey doc! They said to come get you. There's been an accident."

"Where?" She asked sharply.

"Fourth floor -- in the second cargo hold," he got out with a harsh pant. His eyes rounded into the size of saucers when the pink haired woman flickered from view and was gone in the timespan of what seemed like a blink of an eye.

Sakura didn't even bother with the elevator. She was glad she had taken the time to walk most of the ship the first three days she'd been on it to get a decent mental layout. It was incredibly huge, and if something had happened, just like it did now – she hadn't wanted to have to be led to the scene by someone who couldn't utilize chakra. If anything, she'd knew that every second counted. Tsunade-sama had pounded that into her brain from the moment she'd started to teach Sakura medical jutsus.

Shoving open the heavy metal door to the cargo hold, her eyes zeroed in on the crowd of people standing in a semi circle. She brushed people aside, her shrewd gaze assessing the situation while stamping down on any emotion that could surface. Her eyes skimmed one of the large cranes down to the rusty hook that was twisted into one of the boilers and had gotten stuck on the grate. It looked like someone had maneuvered the large crane in the wrong direction – resulting in the hook getting caught and knocking the boiler over. There was a group of people trying to lift the heavy metal off of the sailor who had gotten his legs pinned by it. She could see the blood seeping from beneath him, and immediately she spurred into action. If the metal had cut into his femoral artery, it would be fatal to him if not taken care of soon.

She had to get the boiler off of him. However, she needed to get everyone out of the way. The last thing she needed was for someone else to get hurt. Sakura barked at them in a tone of voice Tsunade-sama would have been proud of, "Move out of the way!"

Several faces turned into the direction of the slender woman in shock at the loud, harsh command. A redheaded woman who looked like she was in her early forties yelled back, "We need to get this off of him so you can help him."

"I know. I'm going to move it. I need everyone to get back," Sakura was already lining her hands with chakra as she made to move to the fallen twisted scrap metal.

No one made to move. It was obvious that they didn't think she could do what she just said.

Just as she was about to yell at them in frustration at their obstinacy, a male tenor interrupted the commotion, "You should do as she says."

Sakura vaguely registered the owner of the voice to be Itachi Uchiha. The stark command in his tone was unmistakable. What she wouldn't give to have a man's voice at times. There was just something about a deep voice that got people moving.

The group trying to lift the obstacle finally backed off and gave her the room she requested. Sakura would have thanked the Uchiha for his help but she forced herself to focus on the task at hand. She grasped the edges of the metal and with a heave that made it look like it took no effort at all she lifted the twisted mess of metal. The crane squeaked and the neck cracked as she forced the debris back. She could hear the shocked gasps but she didn't pause as she turned to the injured person in question. She was on her knees, uncaring that the knees of her pants was getting soaked in blood. She couldn't move him until she took care of this. Even though the sailor should be unconscious from the sheer pain he was in, he was still conscious and looking blearily up into her eyes. Sakura knew it was the fear that had kept him awake. She mumbled a few words of comfort before sending her chakra out of her body to take care of the situation.

This was the first time Itachi had seen such a look of firm resolve on her face. It hinted of an underlying steely strength that she rarely allowed to surface. From the amount of blood pooling on the ground, even with his limited medical knowledge, he knew that it was likely that the sailor had torn an artery or a major blood vessel. On top of that, with all that weight over his left thigh, he had probably sustained broken bones as well. He could see by the still stunned faces of those around him that they couldn't believe that the girl had crumpled that metal that half a dozen of them couldn't lift like it weighed no more then a piece of paper. He hated to admit that it had stunned him a bit as well. From the little information he had on her, he knew that she was known for her medical skill and super strength. Just like her sannin master. It truly made him wonder, what it was that Sasori faced when he had fought her. He knew from the reports from Deidara, that she had help from an elderly kunoichi woman. Even still, he couldn't help but ponder what he had once deemed useless about her as a misguided analysis.

Sakura bit her lip in concentration. Fortunately the tear in the artery had been relatively small. Already she had patched it up, and was working on speeding up the process of his blood cells restoring themselves to make up for the major loss of blood. He had long ago passed out from the extreme pain. But he would live. She wiped the back of her hand against her forehead. A breath later, she was pumping more chakra gently into his system to take care of the abrasions and bruising. The less his body had to work to repair itself, the quicker he'd be up and about again.

The crowd of people split open as two men came through with a stretcher. She lifted her eyes to the men who had come to aid their fallen comrade, "Can you take him to the medic office? If you could put him on the bed, I would appreciate it."

The brawny, tall-framed sailor on the left delivered a sharp nod, "Yes ma'am."

She watched with a sharp eye as they lifted the man gingerly and lay him on the stretcher before taking him up and out of sight. When Sakura stood, she swayed slightly on her feet. A pair of strong hands steadied her, bracing her shoulders like book ends in a shockingly gentle grip. She glanced over to thank the person helping her but ended up gaping when she found herself staring up into all too familiar emotionless onyx orbs. She stepped back out of his hold and even though a little late she got out, "Thank you." She mentally kicked herself. She knew better than just to hurry to her feet after doing such intensive medical care on a patient.

The red-headed woman stepped through and inclined her head gratefully, "No -- it's you we should thank doc."

"Sakura Haruno. You can just call me Sakura." She went to give the woman her hand to shake, her manners kicking in. She suddenly realized that the appendage was stained with blood and drew it back.

The woman's arm snaked out in a surprisingly quick move catching her wrist with hard fingers. She surprised Sakura by shaking her hand with a hearty shake, bloody mess and all. She introduced herself, her voice was deep for a woman but it fit her, "Just call me Dami. I'm the forewoman in the first and second cargo bay on this floor. I'm also one of the resident mechanics."

Sakura surveyed the taller woman. Her crimson hair was all wrapped in tiny braids that went down to her shoulder blades. A moon-shaped scar was a stark contrast of white on her right cheek. Even though she was thin, there was strength in the set of her shoulders. Her eyes were a sharp, piercing violet that had Sakura unconsciously straightening her spine like a soldier coming to attention. She shook her head in protest, "There's no need to thank me."

"Docs! Ya all are the same," Dami's lips thinned into a thoughtful line, "Well anyway --" She broke off when she realized that the group of onlookers were still watching the proceedings with avid interest. Dami snapped at them in a fierce snarl that had them scattering like flies, "What in the hell are you all doing? You got work to do! If ya'll keep gawking like a bunch of useless ninnies, I'm gonna to take away the last break of the day."

Sakura's eyes went wide as the workers swarmed back to work in what was almost a frenzied action. Within what seemed like a few seconds there was a team of welders working on getting the old boiler and scrap metal out of the way, along with a clean up crew working on getting the bloody mess cleaned up. Maybe there really was something about deep voices after all.

"As I was saying --" Dami's mouth quirked into a smirk, "You should learn to take a person's gratefulness when they give it to ya." She folded her arms against her plain cream colored tunic before turning to face Itachi who was still watching the both of them. She jerked a thumb back towards the green-eyed medic, "Go ahead and take her to wherever she needs to go tall, dark, and broody. She still looks a little unsteady on her feet and a bit too pale. Last thing we need is for the ship doc to collapse. We'd be shit outta luck."

A protest started to form on her lips but one quelling look from the older woman and she bit it back. She dipped her chin one more time before leaving the room with the Uchiha at her heels. A curse left her when she stumbled again. Red suffused her cheeks when Itachi grabbed her arm to steady to her. She mumbled her thanks again.

"Are you suffering from chakra exhaustion?" He surprised her by asking.

Lifting her chin, she shook her head, "No it's not that. I mean I used quite a bit in healing him but -- it's really my fault. I didn't eat breakfast this morning and so that's what's really making me feel a bit -- off balance." Which was the truth. Using chakra like that on an empty tank was a bad habit of hers. She usually would use a soldier pill to compensate when needed during the extended hours at the hospital. It wasn't that she didn't want to eat, it was because she often forgot. It had eventually turned into a bad habit.

"You lectured me about drinking more water just a few hours ago and yet you do not follow the ideals of normal common sense yourself." He frowned at her, his stern eyes boring into her own.

"Can it – will you," Sakura waved a dismissive hand at him which further served to deepen his look into an almost scowl. She joked lightly a small smile tugging at her lips, "Didn't I tell you before – it's just an occupational hazard? If I do something that doesn't make sense to you – just fill that into the blank slot as your definitive answer. Nine times out of ten that would be the correct one."

His eyebrows snapped together. The woman was so obviously unafraid of him, despite who he was that she was even teasing him. Not for the first time, he started to brood over the puzzle that was the Leaf kunoichi – Sakura Haruno. For all his history and criminal record, she had chosen to step in the way of an oncoming chidori. She had admitted to him that she had no idea why she'd done something like that but she'd also told him to his face that she wasn't afraid of him. He had ignored her for the better part of the week, just so that he could observe her behavior. The simple truth of her lack of fear of him, had finally sunk into his brain. She really and truly wasn't afraid of him. Actually, she treated him like – he was a normal human being. He couldn't honestly think back to the last time someone had done that. He didn't really want to remember that far back if the truth be told.

Not for the first time, Sakura was forced to see how much the brothers looked like one another. Not just in their physical appearance, but in their expressions. It had been really become more apparent the older Sasuke had gotten, she thought to herself. She realized that Itachi was off and brooding in that mysterious brain of his. She spoke softly, bringing his focus back to her, "I should be all right."

Sakura watched his eyes narrow on her. Somehow she got the distinct feeling that he didn't believe her. A polite grin tugged at the corner of her mouth, "I need to keep an eye on my new patient. So –" She removed her arm from his grip. He immediately let her go, his eyes never leaving her upturned face.

"You aren't going to eat?"

Her mouth opened a little, shocked that he'd even ask her that. He was looking down into her face with that impassive visage of his, but he was frowning at her with his eyes.

The gentle smile that adorned her face took him aback. It was the first true smile she'd given him beyond the typical cold politeness of an acquaintance that was putting up with him out of necessity, "Now – I have to thank you twice."

Despite himself he asked. His curiosity got the better of him, "Why?"

"You helped me move everyone out of the way so I could help the injured man in a timely manner. I know it wasn't necessarily for my sake – but thank you. Also," the lines around her green eyes crinkled as the smile deepened, "I appreciate your concern no matter how slight. My patients come first – but even I realize if I collapse it'll mean nothing. I have some vitamins I can take to help keep me going until dinner time."

Before Itachi could deny her foolish declaration, she had turned on her heel and left him standing there staring after her. A hand went to his hair, the digits of his fingers burying themselves into the black tresses in annoyance. He was beginning to hate the fact that it felt like her eyes seemed to see right through him at times. The one thing he noticed almost immediately about that woman was how quickly and easily she read between the lines. He had kept his face blank in the way that most nin did, a little taken aback by her forthright and heartfelt gratitude. The woman should see him as an enemy for kami's sake. He had chalked her down as another air headed female quickly after first meeting her. She had quickly disabused that notion and yet confirmed it all at the same time. Even to him, just that thought alone hardly made any sense – while it was the only way he could make_ any sense _of her. Forcing the kunoichi from his brain, he pivoted on his heel to return to his duties not realizing that a frown tugged on his lips.

Sakura stumbled into the office, gripping the edge of the counter. She glanced down at herself and grimaced at her blood-stained attire. She knew she looked like she'd just come from a war zone. She washed her hands thoroughly before turning her attention to her patient. A wave of dizziness reminded her that she really should take a few of the vitamins to aid her with her lack of energy. Standing on her tippy-toes to pull one of the white necked bottles down to the counter, she glanced at the label before popping the top. Pouring herself a glass of water, she put the small yellow pill in her mouth before tossing it back with the cool, refreshing liquid.

Twisting around and striding over to her patient. She did a quick scan of his vitals and was pleased to see that his body was still pushing out the white blood cells she'd forced it to make to help replenish his blood loss. She reached down and unclipped his name tag from his tattered gray shirt. She read his name, Haro. Flipping the badge over she found his last name, Akihiro. She went over to the filing cabinet to pull out his case file to make certain he didn't have any allergies to any of the substances she wanted to give him. If she could give him a booster shot to aid the process, all the better.

She quickly pulled up his file, and she was glad that she'd taken the time to put all the manila files in alphabetical order. When she had first went to check out the first aid room, she'd noticed that someone had just shoved the files in the room and had left it a mess. The culprit was probably the doctor who'd quit before the ocean liner was scheduled to depart. It had taken her almost a whole day to get them all in order. Pleased to find that the man's file was devoid of anything she wasn't allowed to give him, she quickly administered the shot. Sitting down in the chair, she leaned back and shut her eyes. She should really go upstairs to clean herself up, but she didn't want to leave the patient alone, just quite yet.

Sakura began to think of home. She wondered what Naruto was doing at that moment? She hoped that everyone was doing fine – well as much as the circumstances allowed. She knew her disappearance would cause her friends a lot of heartache and trouble. It wasn't long as the thoughts in her head finally slowed down from the winding chaotic spiral that she drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

-o-

Naruto leaned against the railing of the ship. His gaze roamed over the expanse of seemingly peaceful depths of pristine blue. He glanced to the side at Kakashi who had his nose buried in the book. Since the moment they had left Konoha, Kakashi had pretty much ignored him. Naruto had a pretty good idea of why his former sensei was still upset with him. He had hoped that Kakashi would come around on his own, but he hadn't yet. The urge to verbally lay it all out and demand Kakashi talk it out with him was strong. Naruto knew however, that would do nothing more than serve to make the tension between them all that much higher.

Sasuke's defection had hurt more than just him and Sakura. It had cut his sensei deeply although he never had let it show the way Naruto and Sakura had. The moment they stepped out of the Hokage's office, the look in Kakaski's eyes held a hint of feeling betrayed. He knew that Kakashi believed that he'd given up on Sasuke. The Uchiha had tried to kill him, but he would never give up Sasuke. After Sasuke had made the last attempt on his life, he could tell that Sakura had taken the former team seven member's actions the hardest. She had told Naruto that she was done with Sasuke for good after that incident. That the Sasuke they'd known as children was dead inside. But he knew that she didn't mean it. At least, he knew that somewhere deep inside her heart, she hadn't given up. Not yet.

He knew that he would have to prove it to Kakashi with this mission that he still cared. Naruto understood that words right now, would wash off him like water off a duck's back. Another swift glance at Kakashi's cold visage served to reinforce Naruto's suspicions. The blond sighed, this mission was going to be a long, hard one indeed.

-o-

The pink haired doctor nearly fell out the seat into a very surprised crumpled heap on the floor when the door to the medic office was opened and then shut with a firm, noisy click. Fortunately for her, she had quick reflexes and she straightened her legs and she braced herself with her heels before she made a complete fool of herself. Rubbing a fist against bleary eyes, she blinked and focused on the intruder. Her spine stiffened when the all too familiar male voice quipped dryly, "It might be prudent to stay awake if you insist on keeping an eye on your patient."

A bright blush painted her cheeks. Itachi had caught her sleeping on the job. She almost wanted to laugh at the irony. Her fingertips went to massage the bridge of her nose, "I think you might just be correct with that sharp observation of yours. I see now the true genius that the Uchiha clan is most famous for."

His response was to give her a blank look that would give Sai a run for his money.

Sakura was startled when he set a sandwich wrapped in cellophane down on the counter top wordlessly. Her stomach growled at her when the smell of the food reached her nose. She arched a brow at him, "I appreciate your humanitarian efforts mister Itachi Uchiha." She picked up the sandwich and unwrapped it before sniffing at it in a surprisingly dainty manner.

"It's not poisoned."

Sakura chuckled lightly his sharp comment. She should have expected him to say something to that effect and yet it had taken her off guard. It was obvious by the way his eyebrows snapped together, he hadn't expected her to laugh at such a seriously given statement like it was a joke. She smirked up into his face, "Of course not. I'm certain that if you wanted to take me out – you'd think of something a bit more creative."

The lines around his eyes relaxed slightly as he considered her statement, "Hn."

"Actually," Sakura made a grimace, while pulling out the spicy salami she'd been searching for. She'd noticed that they added the salty and peppery hot meat in the sandwiches and she'd never been one for spicy food. "The salami is a just bit too hot for my tastes. I like being able to actually enjoy the flavor of my food."

Sakura threw the meat it in the wastebasket before biting into the sandwich. She chewed and swallowed before letting out a contented sigh. Her cheeks colored a dark pink when it finally hit home that Itachi Uchiha had gone through the trouble of bringing her something to eat. Just another thing that didn't quite add up to the reputation that followed him. She was definitely going to have an interesting discussion with Tsunade when she got back to Konoha. Sakura knew that Tsunade-sama would ask her if she'd decided to try and make up some entertaining and delusional fiction instead of submitting a proper report. She ducked her chin in a gesture of gratitude. She voiced softly, "Thank you for bringing this. I must have slept through dinner."

"Dami has made a request that I keep an eye on you. Apparently even a civilian can see that your behavior is foolish."

"Apparently," Sakura agreed easily with the barbed jab before taking a large, and very unladylike bite.

His eyebrows raised several notches at her nonchalant agreement with his barbed comment.

Licking off the bit of mustard staining her fingertips, her eyes trailed back to his face when she realized that he was subjecting her to that typical Uchiha scrutiny. She let out a soft sigh, "Don't let me keep you – I'm certain that you have something important to do."

"You are staying here?"

Sakura tilted her head to the side, "Yes, just for a little longer though." Her forehead furrowed in confusion at the soft spoken question. She would have thought the answer to be rather obvious.

He didn't respond, instead he eyed her blood-stained clothes in a slow from head to toe perusal.

"I don't want to take the chance on him waking up while I'm gone before the medication I've given him kicks in. I get that I look like something the cat dragged in," She gave a careless shrug before taking another huge bite out of her food, "It's just how things go sometimes."

"You are a very peculiar woman." Itachi decided to inform her.

She tilted her head to the side, "Oh? What makes me so odd? I've always thought that every nin had their quirks." Sakura thought when it came down to it, she was the most normal of nearly everyone she knew. She had no bugs living in her skin. She didn't strangle people to death with shadows or crush them in sand coffins. She didn't grow hand shaped wings out of her back. Her eyeballs didn't change into any special colors. So, she had pink hair. Even with that in mind, Sakura had always believed she scaled pretty well in the normal department. And what was Itachi trying to say anyway? He had a shark man for a partner.

"Your behavior puzzles me." He admitted plainly.

The gears clicked into place and Sakura knew what he was thinking. She quirked a half smile at him, "You can't understand why I'm behaving so – normally. For many reasons – this should be abnormal."

"Aa."

Sakura had no problem being upfront with him. She set the half-eaten sandwich aside and steepled her fingers together beneath her chin. She started coolly, "Consider the situation we're in..."

He arched an aristocratic brow at her. Sakura got the feeling that this was Itachi's way of telling her something along the lines of – duh.

"We're two nin from factions or Hidden Villages that aren't on friendly terms," when he opened his mouth to say something, she raised a hand and shook her head. When his shoulders stiffened subtly but he didn't press, she continued earnestly, "We've been made to share a room with one another. For whatever reason – the situation hasn't pissed you off enough, for you to try and put a kunai through my throat. I know I'm stating the obvious – but hear me out. Or rather, let me ask you. What good would it do for me to scream at you like a crazed maniac of a woman?"

"..."

"You'd take my head off, or burn a hole in my brain with that almighty sharingan of yours, or whatever it is that gets you off." She smirked at him when he frowned at her for her choice of words. "I'm a kunoichi yes – but I'm also a doctor. I don't like to take lives if I don't have to. Sure – because I'm from Konoha, it'd probably be wonderfully patriotic of me to try and think of some way to off you. However, that's just not how I work as a person. I've taken lives before because it's been my duty. Even so – it's something that weighs heavily on my conscious. Yes – you are Akatsuki. But honestly – I'm sure you recall before I mentioned something about your eyes. Well that's just it – you're eyes are absolutely nothing like Sasori's. Live and let live I say. I mean – I could really turn around and ask you the same thing. I'm pretty certain that this little cruise we're on is going to cause problems for you and your status with the Akatsuki. You haven't tried to kill me gruesomely since I've caused you so much trouble. I've met a lot of cold-blooded murderers in my life, in and out of Konoha. And you know what?" She put a hand on her hip, "That's kind of what they do. So what do you have to say to that?"

"I do not operate that way." His icy answer made her smile in triumph.

She lifted a finger and wagged it up at him, "You see? You didn't even have to ask me. The answer was rather obvious wasn't it?"

"Yet – I pose more of a danger to you." He let the rest of the sentence hang.

She wondered if Uchiha's were just born arrogant? She blew a fringe of bang away from her eyes in a huff, "Well that used to be true."

"Used to be?" His eyes went half-mast at her challenging set of words.

"It's a little hard to chase a Jinchuriki from out in the middle of the ocean isn't it?" Malachite orbs narrowed on onyx, "I know the Akatsuki has been after Naruto for years. It's not like I've suddenly forgiven you and want to be the bestest of friends ever."

"Then your behavior makes even less sense."

Sakura chuckled lightly, "I guess it does – doesn't it?" She put a finger to her lips to think over what he said than shrugged, "Well this is my way of the ninja. How about that?"

Somehow she had the gut feeling that Naruto would be proud of her for making that statement. Even if it was to Itachi Uchiha.

When he seemed to be digesting that. She tacked onto that, "Well there you have it. If the occupational hazard tag just doesn't seem to fit, then try to insert that it's just 'her way of the ninja.' Then you should be rather set, in how you've got me categorized in that mysterious mind of yours."

"Your behavior is not becoming of a shinobi," Itachi argued coolly.

"Thanks for the compliment," She sent him a mega-watt smile. The same sickeningly sweet grin she gave her less than enthusiastic patients whenever they tried giving her a hard time about something. The man was certainly heavy on the analytical side. She felt like a subject that he was dying to dissect. Why? She had no idea.

When Itachi finally left the small medic office. Sakura picked up the sandwich and finished the small meal. She sent a chaser of water after it and then let out a contented sigh. It felt nice to not have her stomach screaming at her to feed it. She knew that Dami had probably sent the Uchiha up with the food for her. However, she was still grateful. Sakura knew that she really, and seriously confused the hell out of that man. Who would have thought that the best strategy to confuse your enemy was just to be yourself? That certainly wasn't in the Academy manuals.

Apart of her knew it was dangerous to be herself around him. She just truly saw no point in subterfuge at this point. It was possible that they'd have to fight a common enemy together as it was. She still had to figure out how she was going to make it back home with no money to pay for a return voyage. Really, she had bigger fish to fry. If anything, her time as a doctor had taught her to pick her battles. And picking a fight with Itachi Uchiha, was not on her high list of priorities at the moment.

Sakura glanced at her still sleeping patient and let out a sigh. She did another quick scan of his vitals, and was happy with how well his body had handled the treatment she'd given him. She quit the premises after deciding it wouldn't hurt to clean herself up.

With one last glance at the slumbering form of her patient, she decided that a quick shower wouldn't hurt anything. He shouldn't wake up for at least another four to five hours. She shut the door behind her and headed quickly down the hall, itching to finally get cleaned up properly. Her thoughts occupied by Itachi Uchiha and the very long journey ahead of her, but still she just squared her shoulders and internally reminded herself. It's okay Haruno, just take it one day at a time.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **Wow it's been a long time since I've even looked at this story. Due to some requests for an update, I started to work on this chapter. Harken's Bell is still taking precedence over my other posted stories at this time, so really - consider this story on **semi-hiatus**. (Though I do realize that much is probably obvious) I may update if the muse takes me but otherwise, most updates will be predominately on Harken's Bell until it is finished.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the rights to Naruto or Xenogears. This is just purely for fun and entertainment.

**Chapter 5**

Sakura folded her arms across her chest, and gave her patient a stern look, "I'm sorry Akihiro, but you need at least a week of solid bed rest." The said male in question glared back, his dark brown eyes stormy with irritation. When he was about to protest she cut him off, "Did I mention that it's none negotiable?"

"But doc, I can't be laying around! I have money to make!"

Gripping the edge of a nearby chair, Sakura dragged it closer to his bedside and sat down. She hunkered down to eye level, and sent him a small smile, "I understand your concerns. Actually, because of past experience," the memory of many a shinobi and kunoichi alike, trying to escape the confines of a hospital immediately came to mind caused her grin to quirk, "So I went to personally speak with Dami, and she assured me that the accident was no one's fault. For the length of time that I deem necessary for your healing process, your pay won't be docked."

Akihiro averted his eyes, his head turned downwards. Locks of brown hair shielded his expression from her astute gaze.

Finally he spoke again, "I should be thanking you. And I would rather you call me by my first name, if you don't mind that is. I'm not much for formalities."

Immediately Sakura offered Haro her hand. His head shot up, his brown eyes widening in quiet surprise. When he took the delicate appendage, she grinned at him, "I'm not really all that into formalities myself. I'm Sakura."

He rubbed the back of his head with his hand sheepishly, a small smile finally surfacing, "Uh, well I dunno about that. Do you mind if I just call you doc?"

Sakura chuckled softly, "That's fine with me. I've been called worse."

She stood up when there was a knock at the door. Her smile brightened when Dami herself strode in. Violet eyes honed in immediately on the man half sitting up in the bed. The forewoman greeted him with a small, relieved smile, "Akihiro, I see that doc managed to patch you up."

Haro didn't reply, but he nodded.

Sakura excused herself politely, before exiting the medic office to allow them privacy. Shoving her hands into the pockets of the doctor's coat, she moved down the corridor swiftly. Now that Haro was awake, it would probably be prudent of her to go to the kitchens to bring him back something to eat.

But before that, she decided she wanted a breath of fresh air. Traveling up the deck, she opened the door and stepped outside. Grasping the railing, she tilted her chin upward and reveled in the feel of the tangy, salty sea breeze whipping at her tresses. Her nostrils flared, and she shut her eyes, allowing her tension to ebb away.

Despite the circumstances she found herself in. This impromptu boat ride was almost like a vacation compared to her usual day to day life in Konoha. Ino often joked about Sakura's lack of a social life, but the medic nin was content with how things had turned out. Every day in the hospital, she was met with challenges that those who only worked missions in the field could never understand.

Poisons from enemy nin were always evolving into monstrosities that she was left to solve on what was typically a very limited amount of time. Researching new medications, field rations, and surgical procedures that not only saved lives, but also enabled the patients to return to their normal routines. It was something that she prided herself on, at the end of the day. So, she didn't have a blood limit, or an unique ability that set her apart from her peers.

No, all that she had going for her was precise chakra control. However, because of that, she'd accomplished things that she had never dreamed of.

Her ruminations came to a grinding halt when she sensed Itachi's approach. A small smile tugged on the corner of her mouth, when she realized that he wasn't even bothering to conceal his chakra signature.

She opened her eyes when he stepped in the space behind her, but she didn't turn to look at him.

Instead Sakura pivoted on her heel and made to walk around Itachi, but the moment their shoulders aligned, he announced coolly, "Dami has already informed the kitchen of Akihiro's condition, and the cooks have agreed to deliver his meals sent to for the duration of his bed rest."

Sakura stopped mid stride and glanced at Itachi, "I see." She buried her hands in the pockets and adopted a lax pose, "Did she just send you to inform me of this?"

"Aa."

The affirmation from the male at her side forced to her to stop and think. Why hadn't Dami said anything before Sakura left the medic office?

Sakura was slightly unnerved when Itachi answered the query for her, "She feels that it's time for you to take a break. She is well aware that you've stayed in that office for three days."

She arched her brow at the Uchiha, her lip quirking into a small smirk when he frowned at her, "Well well… I see that my roommate likes to tattle."

Not bothering to wait for a come back, Sakura swept back into the ship, her lab coat swirling with the swift stride. The smirk on her face melted into a half smile. The forewoman was competent and astute. For that, she was grateful that Dami was going so far to make certain that everything would go smoothly for all parties concerned. She had long ago learned to appreciate that particular trait. It was one that the forewoman shared with Tsunade-sama.

When she realized that Itachi's presence was not growing distant even with her quick pace, she quickly grew irritated. She had the feeling that Dami had gone as far as to ensure that someone keep an eye on her. And it seemed that, that someone was Itachi. Damn the woman for being so thorough. An unladylike snort left Sakura when the irony of it all hit her full force. She wondered what Dami would think if she knew what Itachi was truly capable of.

Shaking her head, Sakura swiftly veered left, her brisk pace echoing down the corridor. She decided to ignore the order that supposedly came from Dami and headed back to the medic office to question the forewoman herself.

**-o-**

Juugo leaned against the railing of the ship with his hip resting against the sun-warmed metal. Cardinal hued orbs surveyed the agitated white-haired male standing next to him.

Suigetsu arched a brow at Juugo when he realized was being thoroughly watched. Whenever he was the subject of the deceptively gentle giant's scrutiny, it unnerved him. However the purple-eyed nin had long learned to quell his quick fuse when dealing with Juugo. Anyone with half a brain didn't raise their voice at Juugo.

Finally Juugo expressed his thoughts, "You seem a bit… restless Suigetsu." It was a statement, not a query.

Suigetsu nodded, "Shit yeah, I'm restless. Chasing some stupid bitch half way across the world wasn't something I signed up for when I joined Hebi."

"Why didn't you stay behind? Kisame's partner is gone. Perhaps this would have been the chance you've been searching for…" Juugo's deep tones trailed away tellingly.

"Ah hell Juugo," Suigetsu gave an indifferent half shrug, "I guess I can't just say I don't give a shit about all this. I'm just used to all of this by now."

Juugo searched his face for several long moments before nodding, "I understand. I'm relieved you decided to come along with us, even though this is a large detour for you."

Suigetsu's lips thinned over his canines, "Well, from what I understand we've got several months of this ahead of us. Who knows if we can even catch up to them before they catch another boat on the way back? I don't know why Sasuke doesn't just find another medic… I mean - what's the big deal with this chick?"

The taller nin ran a hand through his windswept tangerine locks and shook his head, "All I know is that she is the Sannin Tsunade's apprentice. It is rumored that her healing abilities are on par with her master's and that she is a prodigy in the medical field. It is likely that Sasuke is looking for something beyond a temporary fix for his…"

"Juugo! You know better than to discuss… things like this in," Karin strode up to the two males, her hands rose to rest on her hips. She adopted her usual cocky pose, her red eyes flitting to the side to assure that none of the other passengers had overheard her teammate's conversation.

"Kiss ass," Suigetsu muttered under his breath.

Karin's eyes narrowed when she heard the nin's unappreciated commentary. She squared her shoulders and moved to punish him when Juugo intervened, his usually warm gaze hardening perceptibly, "Do not make a scene."

Suigetsu sighed and rolled his eyes heavenward, further irking the young woman.

Before she could get riled up all over again, Juugo tilted his head to the side, ruby orbs catching and holding Karin's gaze with a scarcely veiled warning.

He was a pacifist by nature, but the last thing he needed on a ship full of people was a display of violence, no matter how small. Keeping his violent nature on a tight leash was hard enough without his teammates unknowingly enticing it out of his unsteady grip.

"Hmph!" Karin tilted her chin upward, only to stare down her nose at Juugo and Suigetsu, "I won't tell Sasuke about your indiscretion this time. You should count yourself lucky!"

Suigetsu answered her warning with a rude gesture.

The redhead gave him one last dirty look before pivoting sharply on her heel. She left them staring after her.

Suigetsu looked over at Juugo with a pained expression, "I must have lost my fucking mind. If she keeps it up, I'm going to toss her ass overboard before this trip is over with."

Juugo turned away and shut his eyes, allowing himself to relax beneath the breeze coming in off the ocean. He only hoped that he could maintain the control that had taken him so long to achieve before he just tossed everyone overboard himself.

**-o-**

Sakura tilted her head to the side as she regarded Dami thoughtfully, "I'm not certain if I want Akihiro returned to his quarters so quickly."

"Is it unsafe to move him?" The redhead folded her arms against her chest, and leaned against the counter while ignoring Haro's wide eyes on her. The doctor returned the forewoman's hard gaze unwaveringly, "No, it would not be unsafe… However, I was just informed that you were going to have his meals brought up to him, and I assumed that…"

Dami shook her head as Sakura's voice trailed away uncertainly, "I would rather not tie up this room or your time with one patient. This is a large ship, and although an accident like that one is highly unusual on this vessel. Akihiro and I discussed it while you were away, and honestly - I'm shocked at the extent of the healing you were able to accomplish. I expected him to be laid up six weeks or better with the wounds he suffered."

Sakura conceded to Dami's point. It would do for her to have the medic office's only bed tied up by one patient for any extended period of time.

Tapping her foot against the linoleum as she thought it over and then she nodded, "You've got a good point. I would like to keep him here for one more night. He can be transferred to his own bunk in the morning, but I would still like to maintain a daily checkup on him just to make certain that everything is healing properly. I was able to seal the wound, but if he exerts too much pressure on it too early then it's possible that it will reopen. Even after his week of bed rest, I would request that you keep him on light duties for another two weeks after that."

"But I thought you said…" Haro started to argue but immediately went silent when Dami sent him a stern look.

"That's a reasonable request. I'll send a couple of sailors by in the morning. Oh, and don't worry about his breakfast, I'll make sure the kitchens will continue to take care of all that for the week," Dami turned to the door and paused to glance over her shoulder at Sakura, "One more thing. The sailors are getting low on that sea sickness remedy you've been making for them."

"I'll have a batch ready in the morning," Sakura dipped her chin.

"Thanks."

When the door shut behind the forewoman Sakura turned to Haro, who was glowering at her. Rolling her eyes heavenward at his churlish behavior, she went to the counter and pulled the half-finished herbal concoctions that she had started the day prior.

It was ten minutes before Haro decided to voice his displeasure, "I thought you said I'd be good to work in a week"

"I know."

"Then why did you tell the boss to put me on light labor for two weeks. The guys are gonna give me hell over it," Haro grumbled.

She should have known the sailor's gratitude wasn't going to last long. She should be used to surly males by now. Sakura turned to look at Haro and sighed when their eyes met. Her lips twisted into a displeased frown, "Do you realize just how close you were to dying? I can appreciate the fact that you're concerned for your job. I don't think your comrades are going to say much, if anything at all. They all witnessed how badly you were injured."

"I just don't want people thinking I'm not doing my part," Haro's shoulders slumped, and he turned his face away.

She shook her head, and returned to mixing the remedy still sitting on the counter. Silence ensued between them for several minutes. She involuntarily winced when she felt Itachi's chakra signature. Sakura suspicions were answered for her when he walked into the medic office without knocking. She realized that he wasn't going to bother to hide his chakra on this voyage. She supposed there really wasn't a point, since they were the only two nin on the ship. Well, as far as they knew anyway.

She didn't bother to glance up at him. Instead she merely inquired in an apathetic tone of voice, "Can I help you?"

Itachi offered her a blank stare before asking, "Have you eaten today?"

When her stomach growled in response, she laid the pestle down sharply. She bristled at him, "What? Are you Dami's watchdog now? Can't you see I'm busy?"

She arched a brow, and aimed a glare at the Uchiha. At the moment, she didn't care that she was snapping at Itachi, rather it was more that she was being interrupted in the middle of her calculations.

The Uchiha returned her glare expressionlessly. He cleared his throat when he heard Haro snicker from behind the disgruntled medic. He wondered idly if it was normal for her to be so short fused. He knew she could be sarcastic, and rather strange at times, but this was a new one for him.

He asked her again, "Have you bothered to eat today?"

"Just get the hell out." Sakura told him in a surprisingly calm voice, and then resumed with grinding the partially ground ginger root while muttering something intelligible about Uchihas accompanied by a string of creative curse words that she'd picked up from her shishou. This time Itachi didn't bother to inquire again. He caught Sakura's wrist in a tight grip, tapered fingers digging into her skin.

Sakura told him softly, "I would suggest letting me go before I'm forced to…"

Itachi didn't wait for her to finish her sentence. He met the eyes of the grinning sailor with a short nod, before tugging Sakura out into the hall.

She went to jerk her wrist from his relentless hold but Itachi's frigid tone stopped her from sending chakra to the right limbs and muscles for the move that Lee had taught her.

He finally explained, "I am not under Dami's orders. The Captain of the Thames has heard about the situation from the forewoman. He also has been told of your unusual behavior regarding your own health."

"Why would he…"

Itachi shook his head in such a way that it ticked her off all over again, "You were rumored to be quite intelligent."

"I'm the only doctor on the ship. All right, I get it. I'll go to the ship's dining room, and eat. You can let me go now," Sakura was starting to feel uncomfortable with Itachi's close proximity. She had planned on getting something to eat after she finished with the herbal remedy. It would only take her a couple more hours at most. Well, maybe not, she still had Akihiro's final examination to do that evening, and then she of course would deliver the finished remedies to Dami's quarters. She didn't see a point in having to double back.

"You will not follow through," Itachi surmised correctly. He released her but gestured towards the mess hall.

Sakura shot him a dark look but then turned away from him, staggering slightly as she did so.

Itachi frowned despite himself at the sight. His vision wasn't all that great, but he could make out the exhaustion in the bull-headed woman's gait. It was then he realized why she was so irritable. She was pushing herself beyond what was acceptable and it was beginning to show. Why would she bother to push herself so hard when she only had one patient? Normally he wasn't one to take that kind of attitude from anyone, but he knew that at this point, it was likely she couldn't help it.

He concluded that this must be a common practice for her. Most people tended to slide into habits, and shinobi were no exception to this.

Sakura was startled when Itachi suddenly asked her, "How long was a standard shift at the hospital?"

In spite of her mood, a smile quirked at the corner of her mouth, "Is that a rhetorical question?"

When he didn't reply Sakura continued with a quick shrug, "Well, since I doubt this information will bring about harm to Konoha…" Her countenance grew solemn when he didn't react, "I don't know if shift is the correct term, but it's not uncommon for me to put in a twenty four, but I'm usually scheduled for a twelve hour shift. I think that a field mission is still more grueling in the long run… it's just that the level of intensity can be constant, but when the price is someone's life - I don't think the price is much to pay."

"That explains much about you," Itachi mulled over what she just told him. It was no wonder her nerves were so frayed. He was certain now that she hadn't bothered to go to their room to rest properly.

Sakura knew that wasn't a compliment. She waved it away with a quick palm flourish, "Yeah, I get it already. It's just normal for me."

She stopped when she reached the mess hall door. Sakura turned to face Itachi. She was slightly startled when he hooked a finger under her chin. Goosebumps prickled across her flesh at the gentle touch. She swallowed the words that formed in her throat, not quite knowing what to say to the strange male.

"I would advise that you break those practices. If you would rather not have someone keep an eye on you to ensure you do the things that most people do without thinking," Itachi informed her smoothly with a smirk playing about his lips.

A flush rose to her cheeks and she averted her eyes, a bit horrified by her reaction to him.

She let out the pent up breath she didn't even realize she was holding when he left her standing like a statue out in the hall. Burying a shaky hand in her hair, she realized that her heart was beating faster than she would like to admit. The most appalling thing about it was that she wasn't feeling fear.

She wasn't quite sure what she was feeling. Sucking in a shaky breath, she entered the mess hall and went straight to the cook's counter, and talked one of the cook's assistants into another sandwich, along with small bottle of apple juice. Shoving the corner of the turkey sandwich into her mouth, she grabbed a couple napkins from the condiment stand and went to return to the medic office.

As she wandered at a slower pace than usual through the hall, she pondered over her reaction. She swallowed the bite as she mulled over the whole scenario. She still didn't understand her behavior during the run in with Sasuke. She realized after five minutes that this must be all connected to whatever had happened back then. That must be it! It wasn't like she really knew Itachi Uchiha.

She stepped into the medic office, and shut the door behind her. An amused chortle reached her ears.

Sakura's look of confusion sent her patient into full blown laughter.

She gave him her best snooty Sasuke expression, the whole aristocratic eyebrow raise, complete with a glare down her nose. A feat for a woman who was a couple inches over five feet.

"I'm sorry doc, but I had no idea."

"What are you talking about?" Sakura was quickly growing irritated with the sailor. She toyed with the idea of putting him to sleep and effectively shutting him up for the evening.

Haro sent her a smirk, "So, you two are hot for each other, but are in that stage of not wanting to admit it yet?"

Sakura went from confusion to aggravated in less than five seconds, "What? Are you kidding me? He's my village's…" she clamped her mouth shut when she noticed the amusement dancing merrily in Haro's eyes.

"What happens out at sea doc, stays out here," Haro shrugged and then added, "You should take advantage of it while you have the chance. 'Sides, life is short."

Ridiculous, Sakura thought to herself. If only these people knew the half of it. She doubted they would be so easygoing if they knew who Itachi Uchiha really was. The dark grin that twisted her expression, quickly quelled any amusement that Haro was feeling at the moment.

Polishing off the rest of her sandwich, she gulped down her apple juice and tossed the bottle and the cellophane in the trash.

She gave Haro a quick checkup, and still feeling a bit irked by his behavior, she put him to sleep for the night with a bit of well-placed chakra. He hadn't even known what hit him.

Sakura sighed out loud, "Finally, I'll get some peace."

Taking advantage of the peace and quiet, she quickly finished the sea sickness remedy along with the instructions for proper use. Placing the portioned bags into a box, she hefted the battered cardboard into her arms and decided that she would deliver it that evening, instead of just waiting to give it to Dami in the morning.

Pleased that she had managed to get everything done despite the roadblocks she encountered, she felt a slight surge of triumph from the astonished expression on Dami's face when she handed her the finished product. It was obvious that the woman had expected for her to be waylaid by Itachi.

After she left the forewoman's room, she struggled with whether she should return to her room for the night, or perhaps it would be better if she returned to the medic office and stay with the patient for his last night there.

In the end, Sakura felt that she deserved a soothing hot shower, and her own bunk that evening.

When she entered the bunk, she pointedly ignored Itachi who was at the moment lounging on his side of the room. She hurriedly grabbed a set of clean clothes and into the bathroom. It wasn't long however until her irritation with the day melted away beneath the rivulets of hot, soothing water droplets sliding down her milky skin.

Finally she emerged from the shower feeling refreshed. Toweling herself dry, she could already feel the heaviness in her eyelids. Her shoulders droop with the fatigue that she had brought upon herself by not resting properly and allowing her chakra reserves to fully restore themselves since Akihiro's accident.

As she combed out her pink hair, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Nothing in the image staring back at her was alarming. In fact the baggy darkness and sallow skin was normal for her. What the hell did she care what she looked like anyway? It wasn't like she was looking for a date. Not in Konoha, and certainly not here.

She returned to the room, continuing to ignore the insufferable Uchiha presence. Flopping belly side down onto the bunk she pulled the covers over her and turned towards the wall. Before she had the chance to shut her eyes, Itachi shut off the light in the room. It was then Sakura realized that Itachi had been waiting for her.

Even though he couldn't see her, Sakura rolled her eyes for what must have been the umpteenth time that day, and finally shut them. It didn't take long for exhaustion to claim her.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Xenogears, ect… ect.**_

**Chapter 6**

That night Itachi couldn't quite grasp the peaceful ebb of sleep. He tossed and turned as fragments of dreams, remnants of the past plagued his mind. He rolled onto his stomach and squinted at the shadowed walls.

Feelings that he had long repressed were beginning to surface and cloud his mind. The moment he had truly come face to face with the pink-haired kunoichi, the gray waters of his soul had continued to ripple disturbed. During the day it was unnoticeable, nor did it even register in his mind when he was completely awake. However, when he had time to ruminate in the evening, he couldn't halt the thoughts that wouldn't stay buried.

In order for him to become the epitome of a perfect shinobi, Itachi believed that he had to relinquish all hold of his humanity so that he would become a weapon without a sheath or a hilt; but one that wielded itself, honed upon each transgression wrought by bloody hands until even his maker couldn't put a stay of safety on him that a pummel would have. He had thought he had achieved that goal through his time in the Akatsuki.

Mikoto, his mother's fearless and forgiving brown orbs, was still seared deep inside his mind. It had affected him in a way that nothing else had ever done. His mother was the only one who hadn't fought. She had accepted it. Or perhaps hadn't wanted the sin of her son's blood on her hands. He would never know now. The woman had been in many ways cold, due to the Uchiha clan's influence.

There were small windows into a fraction of hidden moments, where he had caught a more tender look about her when she had looked upon her sons. But that expression never appeared in his father's sight. It had switched something inside him; the moment she had taken her last breath. Somehow, it had goaded him to be crueler to Sasuke than necessary that night. Where he had been forgiven by his mother, to counterbalance that he had wanted to be loathed by his younger sibling because that's what he deserved.

And for years, this knowledge had been still and stagnate beneath the surface and unsettled in the deepest depths that he kept hidden from the world. Yet this young woman, this strange Konoha medic shinobi should have feared and hated him. Instead she had faced him as fearless as his mother had.

He had even gone so far as to condition his brother's desire for vengeance. Carefully, he had wrought and spun Sasuke's hatred of him, until it had twisted into a monstrosity that he himself could no longer recognize. Somewhere a long the way, it's distortion had diverged and turned into a direction that he hadn't expected. Itachi had long come to realize that he had underestimated the power of the emotion itself.

Rolling on his side, he turned to stare at the bleary lump of the woman in the opposite bunk. Over and over in his mind he played back the whole scenario that had taken place between him, her and Sasuke.

He could still see Sasuke's blatant shock and disbelief.

Sakura had openly admitted that she couldn't quite explain her behavior.

Itachi didn't want to even admit it privately in his mind, that even though he had shown no outward traces of oddity in his own reaction. She had affected him, when she should not have.

It was then that he decided; even though the Captain of the Thames had privately requested that he keep an eye on her, he would keep his interactions with her as limited as possible. There was still so much that he needed to do. And the last thing he needed, was to be distracted by the little green eyed spitfire.

**-o- **

Sakura rose that morning, feeling better and less sore than she had in days. Never mind the fact that she had used the chair in the medic office as a temporary bed of sorts. Just thinking about the damnable thing, had her rubbing the back of her neck as she sat up. Glancing over to the side, she eyed the clock to take note of the time and her gaze immediately panned over to the empty bunker. Her senses flared outward to check to see if he was still nearby. When she realized that he was already out and about for the morning, a small frown touched her lips.

The sun should be barely rising as it was. A brow arched and she ran her fingers through the tangled mass of hair. Shifting out of the covers completely, she quickly found the pile of clean clothes and immediately changed into them. Sakura hurriedly went to finish out her morning routine. After running the comb through her tresses in an effort to look presentable, she was out the door. If Itachi was already up, it was likely the group to pick up Haro would be in the medic office waiting for her.

When she arrived, Dami greeted her with a smile, "Morning Doc."

Sakura nodded in return and then said, "I'll do just one more check over, and then he's all yours."

"Sounds good," the redhead responded, still grinning.

She entered the medic office and after the initial greeting, proceeded to do just as she said. Satisfied with his breathing and his heart rate, she gave Haro a big smile, and he returned the gesture. She turned and opened the door wide open and ushered the group in.

Dami told her, "We'll take care of the rest. Is there anything else we should know before we move him?" "Nope. He's healing up fine. On the counter," Sakura pointed to the clear bottle filled with blue and white capsules, "is some pain medication for him. He's to take one in the morning after breakfast every day for a week."

Sakura watched as two large sailors hefted him gently out of the bed, and proceeded to take him out. They halted next to Sakura when Haro asked them to stop. He smiled at her, "Thanks again, Doc. I'll see you around."

She smiled and nodded, "Try and take it easy okay, Haro."

He chuckled and shook his head as they carried him away.

"We'll send someone up to change the bedding. Would you mind if I borrowed your muscle after you get some breakfast?"

A frown surfaced on her features, wiping away the smile that had once been there, "If you need me right away, I don't mind if…"

"Eat. Then come find me on the second level cargo bay," the redhead returned sternly, before pivoting sharply on her heel and left Sakura standing there staring after the forewoman with a bemused smile.

What was it with these people and their obsession with her eating habits anyway? A dry chuckle escaped her throat. With a mental shrug, she made her way up to the cafeteria and hurriedly gathered up what bits of breakfast remained and sat down at an empty bench to eat. Already, the sailors and various workers had finished their meal and had vacated the mess hall.

Just like a Hidden Village, everyone and everything had to be in place to keep disasters at bay, she thought to herself as she bit into a lukewarm piece of egg. It was with an almost mechanical precision she finished off her breakfast.

Rising, she took her tray and took the last gulp of her still hot tea before quitting the premises.

Curiosity urged her on, she went to the second floor to search for Dami amongst the smoke and workers flitting from one end of the large, almost cavernous hold to the other. The insistent clank of steel and hammers drew her attention. Her lips pressed into a thoughtful line when she realized that they were still cleaning up the accident from a couple days before. They had already cleared most of it away, but it was obvious that the crane they were milling around sustained some damage at the base.

Sakura strode up to the redhead the moment she spotted her. She inquired smoothly, "What do you need? I'll do whatever I can to help."

"That was quick." Dami surveyed her silently for a moment, and then gestured to a pile of crates that had also been tumbled into an awkward angle against the edge of the black grate, "We were able to get most of the mess picked up. We could have unpacked and repacked everything but after seeing what you could do, I would rather not waste the materials to do it. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind helping us move that out of the way, so that we can get to the crane to fix it. We have a few welders aboard that I know can handle it once they have the room to work."

"Just show me where you want them," Sakura started to roll up the edge of her sleeves, and the moment she took her first step towards the toppled crates - she began to line the specific muscles that she would need to use for the job with chakra.

The sailors watched the young, mysterious doctor pick up the large insanely heavy crates easily and efficiently only to relocate them to exactly where the forewoman wanted them.

However, by the time it was all said and done, Sakura had worked up a good sweat. Wiping her brow with the back of her hand, she glanced at the neat pile she had just made. She smiled at Dami, "Was that the last of them?" "Yup. Thanks. You just saved us a lot of time and effort that I really didn't want to spend on just one project."

A thought suddenly came to Sakura, "I still haven't figured it out yet. I know this is a working ship, but other than having a crew to keep the engine fed with fuel. Why are there so many people needed on this ship?"

Dami gestured to the group watching them with a flick of the wrist towards the still broken crane, "Get back to work."

A smile graced Sakura's features for a moment, and then she arched a brow when Dami turned back to her once again.

"This ship, is very much like a floating city. Since the Captain is hell bent on staying out at sea most of the time. We just pick up the cargo and supplies and go. He leaves it to the foremen to sort it all out later, and keep everything running as smoothly as possible during the journey to and from ports."

"If you don't mind my asking, what kind of cargo does this ship carry?" Sakura asked, curiosity lacing her voice.

"Anything and everything, really. Trade has really opened up with the other continent in the past few years."

"What is it like over there?" Temujin hadn't really talked about his homeland much. All that she knew was that when he was a child it was a war torn land, Sakura mused privately. Hopefully it wasn't like that anymore.

"It's hard to explain. It's very different than anything you've probably seen before. The language is all that we really share with them. You'll see for yourself when you get there," Dami glanced at her and smiled with a small shake of her head.

At that response, Sakura fell silent.

Dami suddenly asked out of nowhere, "Did the Captain mention the issue of pirates?"

She tilted her head to the side, "Yes. But only briefly. Are they a major concern?"

"The closer we get to the eastern continent the more likely it will be. We have the means to fight back, but I'm most concerned about this metal tub getting damaged in the fray. The people on the other continent have technology that frankly, we lack. We've been fortunate enough that it hasn't happened that we've been boarded yet, but -" Dami suddenly grew silent and shook her head.

"Well hopefully it doesn't happen this time either, but if it does - the Captain has asked us to help," Sakura said to reassure the forewoman.

The other woman was about to reply when suddenly one of the workers called out, "Yo Dami! Can you come over here a minute?"

The redhead gave her a tight smile before striding away to assist the worker.

Technology or otherwise. Sakura knew that the pirates or whatever they were wouldn't have a chance against Itachi should they have the ill luck to board the Thames.

She almost wanted to berate herself for the self assured faith she had in the shinobi. But, considering the circumstances, it was only human of her to feel some relief in the knowledge that between her and Itachi - should any enemy try to attack the ship, they would have a hell of a time succeeding.

Turning on her heel, she left the second cargo bay with her mind full of things she still wanted to get done. The medicinal supplies still needed to be organized and categorized so that she would be better prepared in the case of another emergency.

Just as she was turning down the hall to the medic office, Itachi came around the bend at the same time.

When he stopped to peer at her silently, she instinctively did the same. It didn't take long for the stretch of quiet to annoy her. She quickly thought of something to say, "I just came down from the second floor cargo bay. Dami needed my assistance."

When he arched a brow at her, she silently admonished herself for the useless comment. She swallowed and then added, "She asked me if the Captain had mentioned the pirates to us." Shifting her weight to her other foot, she cocked her head to the side, "Apparently, as we get closer to the other continent, the higher the risk. We still have a long ways to go, but… we should discuss a plan just incase it actually occurs."

His adam's apple bobbed as he continued to stare right back at her. Not for the first time, Sakura felt like a specimen waiting to be dissected.

After he seemed to come to some sort of conclusion, his eyes narrowed on her falling into narrow slits, "Stay out of my way."

In other words, he was telling her without mincing words that he didn't need her assistance. She hated to admit that the dismissal stung, when it shouldn't. It wasn't the first time someone had overlooked her usefulness. Hell, she knew that she shouldn't blame him for his reaction after their little scuffle with Sasuke and his groupies. She hadn't shown herself to be reliable, that was for sure. But on some level, it still pissed her off.

The moment he stepped passed her. Sakura mumbled something about male Uchiha's and PMS. Kami only knew that they were as moody as a hormonal woman, even on their best days.

He didn't even bother to stop or look back at the grumbling female.

**-o-**

"Do you believe it's possible to catch up to the Thames?" Sasuke asked the Captain of the ship in a cool tone, that belied the hard look in his dark eyes.

"You're telling me, that if I can get you aboard the Thames before it docks on the other continent, that you're going to pay me fifty thousand ryō?" The balding man leaned back in his wooden seat and scratched the graying scruff of a beard on his chin, "Well, I'd like to accept your offer, but - even for money like that, I'm not going to cut through the Void to try and play catch up. The Thames is a large cargo ship for sure, but it's swift for its size."

"A hundred thousand then," Sasuke placed his palms on the table and leaned forward to peer into the Captain's watery gray eyes.

Karin's eyes flit between the two males knowing full well that Sasuke's temper was still simmering just below the surface after the strange pink haired woman had escaped with his older brother. Talk about rubbing the salt in the wound. He had called it killing two birds with one stone; but she knew better. The issue with the woman was much more personal than he let on.

She cut in curtly, "What is the Void?"

The old sailor turned to glance at her, he turned in his seat to get in a better position to look at her, "Oy lass, you've never heard of the Void?"

Karin shook her head, "I hate to admit that I haven't." She avoided peeking over at Sasuke to gauge his reaction at her interruption.

"It's the very reason why travel takes so long. Sturdy ships have tried to cut through the Void to make it to shore quickly. None have ever made it, not as far as I know. Choppy seas, sea monsters, and unreliable weather that hits ya like a hurricane. Not for any amount of coin, will any Captain worth his salt take his ship through there. It's not worth your ship or your crew. But," he turned to Sasuke then with a frown playing about the corner of his mouth, "I can see what I can do. The Thames left port only a few days ahead of us. I'll talk to my navigator and see what he thinks can be done."

Sasuke's lips thinned at the Captains response, but instead of arguing further - he nodded.

Karin let out the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

As each day came and went, it seemed that the Uchiha was more and more on edge. She wanted to ask him what was so important about this Sakura anyway. In her private opinion, a medic was a medic.

She dipped her head at the old sailor before falling into line behind Sasuke and shut the door behind them.

Before she could vocalize her thoughts, he spoke first, "Either way, it won't matter. I would prefer that we don't miss them before they hop on the first ship home. It would be better if we could catch them at sea however. They would have no where to run."

The last bit held an edge to it that reflected in his midnight gaze. It caused Karin to shiver noticeably. She hated to admit even in the haven of her mind, that it wasn't in the good way that usually made her feel excited in all the right places.

"I'll inform Juugo and Suigetsu of the Captain's response. As it is," she fell into step behind him again when he began to walk away, "we were fortunate that we were able to find a ship that would give us passage on such a short notice, and at a reasonable price."

Sasuke glanced over his shoulder over at her, his eyes narrowing into slits to peer straight through her before he finally just left her standing there staring at his retreating back. Karin took that as an affirmative to proceed.

**-o-**

Sakura watched his retreating back with something akin to bewilderment. Unsure of how to react to the dismissive statement, she quelled the temper that wanted to rise and decided it would best that she get back to work herself. He was an Uchiha. That was just how they were.

Striding down the last stretch of the drab gray corridor, she entered the medic office and did exactly what she had decided to do.

However, unlike the messy filing system everything else was in decent order. She wondered with not a small amount of wry amusement, how long it would take her to get bored. They hadn't even been out a month yet, and still had so much time to go. She hoped that they would be affable to giving her a ride home.

Pausing to rub her temples, she wondered absently if Itachi would do the same. It was one thing to be stuck with the shinobi on the trip one way, but a totally different one to ponder about the return home.

Shaking her head hard to clear her thoughts, she mumbled to herself, "One day at a time Sakura."

Though, she had to admit. She was a bit taken aback by Itachi's calm temperament. Sure, he had been angry about their situation initially, but to her complete surprise he had never taken it out on her. They shared a bunker, to her chagrin, but it really was uneventful all the same.

Really, she should be plotting his demise. It wasn't like she didn't know how much her village wanted to end Akatsuki once and for all. Yet, when everything was said and done, Itachi had stepped in to block Sasuke from getting his hands on her for reasons unknown to her. He could have left her bleeding body behind, but he hadn't done that either.

Her deeply ingrained sense of integrity balked.

Sakura openly grimaced when she recalled her hate filled rant, as a teenager. She sighed. She supposed a lot of her emotions had changed after Sasuke had tried to kill Naruto. After that had transpired between them, she had literally decided, fuck it.

Usually she could come up with a better word for things. But, that summed it all up for her in a nut shell.

She knew Naruto still carried some hope that Sasuke would decide to pull his head out of his ass. Suffice to say, she didn't share Naruto's feelings on the matter. All she really wanted to give Sasuke was a chakra filled fist punch to the jaw. Just the thought alone, gave her the desire to pop her neck and crack her knuckles.

Deft fingers continued to move and work, even as her thoughts whirled round and round. At the end of every thought cycle, her mind always came to dwell on one man.

A small snarl of frustration at her wayward self furled her lip. If only her own actions hadn't confused her.

When she finished her current project, she sat down on the chair still sitting next to the bed with a large sigh. Shutting her eyes against the feel of the massive vessel rocking slightly back and forth against the calm ocean, she loathed her inner self introspection at this time in her life.

A wry smile curved her lips at the thought.

Her mind slowly came to a grinding halt. Perhaps she had used more chakra than she thought, she mused. Part of her wanted to get up and return to her room to catch a quick nap. Another, wanted to avoid the Uchiha completely.

Perhaps Uchiha males in general were the bane of her existence.

She was still perturbed by his stupid comment, and she'd rather not look at him if she could help it. At least for a little while. It was like this that she fell asleep, her chin tucked against her chest.

**-o-**

Late that afternoon, Itachi had the misfortune of running into Dami, the forewoman. She hadn't said a word. Instead she had leveled a piercing look at him that would have rivaled any Hyuuga clansmen.

Despite his resolve that morning, he decided that it wouldn't hurt to follow up on the simple request. After all, even though he maintained this situation was entirely the kunoichi medic's fault, the Captain of the Thames had been lenient with them. From what little he knew about ships like this one, stowaways were not treated well.

Not that he was incapable of terrorizing this ship and forcing their compliance. Thinking back on it, Itachi didn't know why he just didn't do so in the first place. It would have been the most effective course of action.

Her soft voice haunted him, _you aren't going to hurt them, are you?_

In the end, it all went back to that problematic female.

Before he realized he was doing it, he was striding in the direction of the medic office where. He hadn't bothered to track her chakra signature, because he knew that's exactly where she'd be.

He didn't bother to knock. Cracking the door open, he peered inside. Slowly, he slipped it open all the way. His mouth firmed when he found her sound asleep in the chair, once again. The woman really did not have any sense of self preservation as far as he was concerned. She didn't even stir at his silent entry.

It would be a simple matter for him to end her.

The thought alone caused bile to rise to his throat. He had initially thought she had made a ridiculous statement when she announced to him point blank, in Tsukuyomi in all places, that he wouldn't kill her. His eyes narrowed at the stray thought.

In the matter of a second, he was standing in front of her. His shadow engulfing her petite form.

Dark gray eyes roamed over her from head to toe. Stray strands of pink hair had fallen forward, brushing against the sides of her pale, soft cheeks. Itachi's hands clenched at his sides as the overwhelming urge to brush a fingertip against her delicate skin that seemed to beckon him.

What rocked him, was that it was not the feeling of desire for a woman that nagged at him. No, it was something indescribable, that beckoned him into a realm he did not want to traverse. Confusion spiraled through him at the strangeness of his situation. All the years of his strict training melted away and what was left there, was him. A man.

He stood frozen in place, trying to analyze the emotion that clawed at him.

His mouth twisted at the irony when he realized exactly what it was.

Staring down at her prone form, his fingers curled into a fist as he snatched his wandering hand away and forced it to stay at his side.

Itachi turned away, and left the room before he did something that he would regret.

He shut his eyes, against the sensation that beat at his senses.

The longing left him drowning in a clogged choke that he couldn't seem to grapple his way out of. When it was all said and done, the yearning to protect the woman overrode everything else in that moment he had stood over her unprotected form.

In the deepest part of him, the piece he didn't want to admit to was that when everything was said and done, _this _whatever _this _was, was the reason for his decision behind all the recent choices he'd made concerning his current situation. As much as he wanted to blame her for it, he knew that he could not.

Lost in thought, he returned to assist the forewoman.


End file.
